UC-NRLF 


GIFT   OF 
MICHAEL  REESE 


Digitized  by  the  Internet  Archive 

in  2007  with  funding  from 

Microsoft  Corporation 


http://www.archive.org/details/comeniusbeginninOOmonrrich 


Edited  by  NICHOLAS  MURRAY  BUTLER 


COMENIUS 


AND 


THE   BEGINNINGS   OF   EDUCATIONAL 
REFORM 


BY 


WILL  S.  MONROE,  A.B. 

PROFESSOR  OF  PSYCHOLOGY  AND  PEDAGOGY  IN  THE 
STATE  NORMAL  SCHOOL  AT  WESTFIELD,   MASS. 


~  OF  THB 

[  UNIVERSI 


NEW  YORK 

CHAKLES   SCKIBNEK'S   SONS 

1900 


$ 


V 


<£*- 


f-  s 


COPYRIGHT,  I9OO,  BY 
CHARLES  SCRIBNER'S  SONS 


Norfooob  $«gg 

J.  S.  Cushing  &  Co.  —  Berwick  &  Smith 
Norwood  Mass.  U.S.A. 


PREFACE 

The  present  volume  is  an  effort  to  trace  the  reform 
movement  in  education  from  Vives,  Bacon,  and  Ratke 
to  Comenius,  who  gave  the  movement  its  most  signifi- 
cant force  and  direction;  and  from  him  to  the  later 
reformers,  —  Francke,  Rousseau,  Basedow,  Pestalozzi, 

Frdbel^jmd^JHerbart. A  variety  of  ^  ideas,  interests, 

and  adaptations,  all  distinctly  modern,  are  represented 
in  the  life-creeds  of  these  reformers;  and,  in  the 
absence  of  a  more  satisfactory  term,  the  progressive 
movement  which  they  represent  has  been  styled  real- 
isnij  —  sometimes  called  the  "new  education." 

It  has  been  well  said  that  "the  dead  hand  of  spirit- 
ual ancestry  lays  no  more  sacred  duty  on  posterity 
than  that  of  realizing  under  happier  circumstances 
ideas  which  the  stress  of  age  or  the  shortness  of  life 
has  deprived  of  their  accomplishment."  Many  of  the 
reforms  represented  by  the  realists  occupy  no  incon- 
siderable place  in  the  platforms  of  modern  practi- 
tioners of  education ;  and  in  the  belief  that  a  history 
of  the  movement  might  contribute  toward  the  ulti- 
mate reforms  which  realism  represents,  it  has  seemed 
J3xpedient_j&>  .focus  such  a  survey  on^the  life  and 
teachings  of  the  strongest  personaKtyand  chief  expo- 
nent of  the  movement. 

The  condition  of  education  in  Europe  during  the 
sixteenth  century  is  briefly  told  in  the  opening  chap- 


vi  PEEFACE 

ter;  following  are  given  the  traces  of  the  educational 

development  of  Comenius  in  the  writings  of  Vives, 

Bacon,  and  Ratke ;  three  chapters  are  devoted  to  the 

life  of  Comenius  and  the  reforms  in  which  he  actively 

participated ;  an  exposition  of  his  educational  writings 

has'  three  chapters  ;  a  chapter  is  given  to  the  influence 

of  Comenius  on  Erancke,  Kousseau,  Pestalozzi,  and 

other   modern   reformers;    and   the   closing  chapter 

sums  up  his  permanent  influence.     The  volume  has 

two  appendices,  —  one  giving  tables  of  dates  relating 

to  the  life  and  writings  of  Comenius,  and  the  other 

a  select  annotated  bibliography. 

In  the  exposition  of  the  writings  of  Comenius,  the 

author  has  made  liberal  use  of  English  and  German 

translations  from  Latin  and  Czech  originals.     In  the 

case  of  the  Great  didactic,  the  scholarly  translation  by 

Mr.  Keatinge  has,  in  the  main,  been  followed.     Free 

translations  of  portions  of  this  work  had  been  made 

by  the  author  before  the  appearance  of  Mr.  Keat- 

inge's  book;  and  in  some  instances  these  have  been 

retained.     As  regards  the  account  of  Comenius'  views 

on  the  earliest  education  of  the  child,  the  author's 

edition  of  the  School  of  infancy  has  been  followed; 

and  in  the  discussion  of  reforms  in  language  teaching, 

he  is  indebted  to  Mf.  Bardeen's  edition  of  the  Orbis 

pictus,  and  to  Dr.  William  T.  Harris  for  the  use  of 

the  handsome  Elzevir  edition  of  the  Janua,  which  is 

the  property  of  the  Bureau  of  Education. 

WILL  S.  MONROE. 

States  Normal  School, 
Wbstfibld,  Mass. 


CONTENTS 

CHAPTER  I 

European  Education  in  the  Sixteenth  Century 

Humanism,  realism,  and  naturalism  characterized  —  Devo- 
tion of  the  sixteenth  century  to  the  humanistic  ideal 
—  Study  of  Latin  eloquence  —  Style  the  chief  aim  — 
Neglect  of  the  mother-tongue — Views  of  John  Sturm 
and  the  Jesuits  —  Devotion  to  Cicero  —  Decadence  of 
the  later  humanists  —  Erasmus  and  Melanchthon  on 
the  enrichment  of  the  course  of  study — Satires  of 
Rabelais  directed  against  the  humanists  —  Protests 
of  Montaigne  —  Attitude  of  Ascham  and  Mulcaster  — 
Transition  from  humanism  to  realism 

CHAPTER  II 

Forerunners  op  Comenius 

Traces  of  the  intellectual  development  of  Comenius. 
Vives  a  realist  —  His  early  training  in  Spain  and 
France^—  Educational  activity  in  Belgium  and  Eng- 
land-* Views  on  the  education  of  women  —  Theory 
of  education  —  Comparison  of  Comenius  and  Vives. 
Bacon  the  founder  of  modern  realism  —  Views  on  the 
education  of  his  day  —  Attacks  medisevalism  —  Study 
of  nature  and  the  inductive  method  —  Individual  dif- 
ferences among  children.  Ratke  —  Studies  at  Ham- 
burg and  Rostock  —  Visits  England  and  becomes 
acquainted  with  the  philosophy  of  Bacon  —  His  plan 
of  education — Its  reception  by  the  universities  at 
vii 


viii  CONTENTS 

PAGX 

Jena  and  Giessen  —  Organization  of  the  schools  at 
Gotha  —  Call  to  Sweden  —  Summary  of  Ratke's  views 

—  Harmony  of  his  teachings  with  those  of  Comenius. 
Campanella,  Andrese,  and  Bateus  —  Their  influence 

on  the  life  and  teachings  of  Comenius         ...      15 

CHAPTER  III 

Boyhood  and  Early  Life  op  Comenius:   1592-1628 

Ancestry  of  Comenius  —  Attends  the  village  school  at 
Strasnitz  —  Studies  Latin  in  the  gymnasium  at  Prerau 

—  Character  of  the  Latin  schools  of  his  day  —  Enters 
the  college  at  Herborn  —  Studies  theology  and  phi- 
losophy —  Inspired  by  the  teachings  of  Alsted — Makes 
the  acquaintance  of  the  writings  of  Ratke  —  Continues 
his  studies  at  Heidelberg  —  Begins  his  career  as  a 
teacher  at  Prerau  —  Ordained  as  a  clergyman  —  In- 
stalled as  pastor  and  school  superintendent  at  Fulneck 

— Persecution 38 


CHAPTER  IV 

Career  as  an  Educational  Reformer:  1628-1656 

-jglig-ht-ta  Pulanth—  Appointed  director  of  the  gymnasium 
at  Lissa — Reforms  introduced  —  Literary  projects  — 
Need  of  a  patron  —  Call  to  England  —  Friendship  with 
Hartlib  — Interest  of  the  English  Parliament  — Dis- 
content with  existing  educational  institutions  — 
Lewis  de  Geer,  his  Dutch  patron  —  Call  to  Sweden  — 
Interview  with  Oxenstiern  —  Located  at  Elbing  — 
Reform  of  the  Swedish  schools  —  Return  to  Poland 

—  Consecration  as  senior  bishop  —  Consequences  of 
the  treaty  of  Westphalia  —  Ecclesiastical  ministrations 

—  Call  to  Hungary  —  Reform  of  the  schools  at  Saros- 
Patak  —  Plan  of  a  pansophic  school  —  Return  to  Lissa 

—  The  city  burned  —  Flight  of  Comenius  from  Poland      47 


CONTENTS  ix 

CHAPTER  V 
Closing  Years:  1656-1670 

PAGK 

Flight  to  Amsterdam — Reception  by  Lawrence  de  Geer 

—  Religious  freedom  in  Holland  —  Publication  of  the 
complete  edition  of  his  writings  —  Other  educational 
activities  —  The  "one  thing  needful"  —  Death  at 
Amsterdam  and  burial  at  Naarden  —  Family  history 
of  Comenius  —  Alleged  call  to  the  presidency  of  Har- 
vard College  —  Portraits  —  Personal  characteristics    .      7 1 

CHAPTER  VI 

Philosophy  of  Education 

The  Gh'eat  didactic  —  Conditions  under  which  produced  — 
Aim  of  the  book — Purpose  of  education  —  Man's" 
craving  for  knowledge  —  Youth  the  thtie  for  training  : 

—  Private  instruction/  undesirable  —  EoliiaaliQiL_for 
gjrjs  as  wellj&iioys  —  Uniform  methods.  Education 
according  to  nature  —  How  nature  teaches  —  Selection  . 
and  adaptation  of  materials  —  Organization  of  pupils- 
into  classes  —  Correlation  of  studies.  Methods  of 
instruction  —  Science  —  Arts  —  Language  —  Morals — 
Religion.  Types  of  educational  institutions  —  The 
mother's  school  —  School  of  the  mother-tongue  — 
Latin  school  —  University.  School  discipline  — Char- 
acter and  purpose_of  discipline  —  Corporal  punish- 
ment only  in  cases  of  moral  perversity        ...      83 

CHAPTER  VII 
Earliest  Education  op  the  Child 

School  of  infancy  —  Circumstances  under  which  written 

—  View  of  childhood  —  Conception  of  infant  educa- 
tion. Physical  training  —  Care  of  the  body  —  The 
child's  natural  nurse — Food  —  Sleep — Play  and  exer- 


CONTENTS 


cise.  Mental  training — Studies  which  furnish  the 
symbols  of  thought  —  Nature  study  —  Geography  — 
History  —  Household  economy  —  Stories  and  fables 
—  Principle  of  activity  —  Drawing  —  Arithmetic  — 
Geometry  —  Music  —  Language — Poetry.  Moral  and 
religious  training  —  Examples  —  Instruction  —  Disci- 
pline —  Some  virtues  to  be  taught  —  Character  of 
formal  religious  instruction 109 


CHAPTER  VIII 

Study  of  Language 

Dominance  of  Latin  in  the  seventeenth  century  —  Methods 
of.  study  characterized  by  Comenius.  The  Janua  — 
Purpose  and  plan  — Its  success.  Atrium  and  Ves- 
tibulum  —  Their  relation  to  the  Janua.  The  Orbis 
pictus  —  Its  popularity  —  Use  of  pictures.  Methodus 
novissima  —  Principles  of  language  teaching  —  Func- 
tion of  examples  —  Place  of  oral  and  written  language 
in  education         .        . 123 

CHAPTER  IX 

Influence  of  Comenius  on  Modern  Educators 

Francke  —  Early  educational  undertakings  —  The  institu- 
tion at  Halle  —  Character  of  the  Paedagogium  —  Im- 
pulse given  to  modern  education.  Rousseau  —  The 
child  the  centre  of  educational  schemes  —  Sense 
training  fundamental  —  Order  and  method  of  nature 
to  be  followed.  Basedow  —  Protests  against  tradi- 
tional methods  —  Influenced  by  the  Emile  —  His 
educational  writings  —  The  Philanthropinum .  Pesta- 
lozzi  —  Love  the  key-note  of  his  system  —  Domestic 
education  —  Education  of  all  classes  and  sexes  —  The 
study  of  nature  —  Impulse  given  to  the  study  of 
geography.     Frobel —  His  relations  to  Comenius  and 


CONTENTS  xi 

PAGE 

Pestalozzi  —  Educational  value  of  play  and  principle 
of  self-activity  —  Women  as  factors  in  education. 
Herbart  —  Assimilation  of  sense-experience  —  Train- 
ing in  character —  Doctrine  of  interest        .        .        .     142 


CHAPTER  X 

Permanent  Influence  of  Comenius 

General  neglect  of  Comenius  during  the  eighteenth  century 
—  Causes  —  Intrenchment  of  humanism  —  Summary 
of  the  permanent  reforms  of  Comenius  —  Revived 
interest  in  his  teachings  —  National  Comenian  peda- 
gogical library  at  Leipzig — The  Comenius  Society  — 
Reviews  published  for  the  dissemination  of  the  doc- 
trines of  Comenius —  Conquest  of  his  ideas        .        .     165 


APPENDICES 

I.     Table  of  Dates 173 

II.    Select  Bibliography       •••••.  175 

Index         ..........  181 


COMENIUS 


CHAPTER  I 

EUROPEAN  EDUCATION  IN  THE  SIXTEENTH  CENTURY 

Humanism,  realism,  and  naturalism  characterized  —  Devotion  of 
the  sixteenth  century  to  the  humanistic  ideal  —  Study  of  Latin 
eloquence  —  Style  the  chief  aim  —  Neglect  of  the  mother-tongue 
—  Views  of  John  Sturm  and  the  Jesuits  —  Devotion  to  Cicero  — 
Decadence  of  the  later  humanists  —  Erasmus  and  Melanchthon 
on  the  enrichment  of  the  course  of  study  —  Satires  of  Rabelais 
directed  against  the  humanists  —  Protests  of  Montaigne  —  Atti- 
tude of  Ascham  and  Mulcaster — Transition  from  humanism  to 
realism. 

"Education  in  Europe,"  says  Oscar  Browning,1 
"  has  passed  through  three  phases,  which  may  conven- 
iently be  called  humanism,  realism,  and  naturalism. 
The  first  is  grounded  upon  the  study  of  language,  and 
especially  of  the  two  dead  languages,  Greek  and  Latin. 
The  second  is  based  upon  the  study  of  things  instead 
of  words,  the  education  of  the  mind  through  the  eye 
and  the  hand.  Closely  connected  with  this  is  the 
study  of  those  things  which  may  be  of  direct  influ- 
ence upon  and  direct  importance  to  life.  The  third  is 
not  in  the  first  instance  study  at  all.    It  is  an  attempt 

1  Aspects  of  education.  By  Oscar  Browning.  New  York :  In- 
dustrial Educational  Association,  1888. 

B  1 


2  COMENIUS 

to  build  up  the  whole  nature  of  man,  —  to  educate  first 
his  body,  then  his  character,  and  lastly  his  niind." 

The  sixteenth  century  was  wedded  to  the  human- 
istic ideal  of  education.  Without  regard  for  the 
diversity  of  avocations,  classical  culture  was  held  to 
be  the  safest  and  best  training  for  the  manifold  duties 
of  life.  Aristotle's  Politics  was  considered  the  wisest 
utterance  on  the  direction  of  affairs  of  state ;  Caesar's 
Commentaries  the  safest  guides  to  military  eminence ; 
the  practical  Stoicism  of  the  Latin  authors  the  most 
infallible  basis  for  ethics  and  the  regulation  of  con- 
duct; and  as  for  agriculture,  had  not  Virgil  written 
a  treatise  on  that  subject  ?  It  was  clear  in  the  minds 
of  the  sixteenth-century  humanists  that  classical  cul- 
ture furnished  the  best  preparation,  alike  for  theo- 
logians and  artisans. 

To  accomplish  this  purpose,  as  soon  as  the  child 
was  considered  sufficiently  matured  for  linguistic  dis- 
cipline, and  this  varied  from  the  sixth  to  the  ninth 
years,  he  was  initiated  into  the  mysteries  of  Latin 
eloquence.  His  preliminary  training  consisted  in  a 
verbal  study  of  the  Latin  grammar  for  purposes  of 
precision  in  speech  and  successful  imitation;  but,  as 
the  grammar  was  printed  in  Latin,  with  its  hundreds 
of  incomprehensible  rules  and  exceptions,  all  of  which 
had  to  be  "  learned  by  heart,"  the  way  of  the  young 
learner  was,  indeed,  a  thorny  one.  True,  the  classical 
authors  were  later  read,  but  chiefly  for  the  purpose 
of  gleaning  from  them  choice  phrases  to  be  used  in 
the  construction  of  Latin  sentences,  or  for  purposes 
of  disputations  in  dialectics.  Logic  and  history  were 
given  most  subordinate  places  in  the  course  of  study, 
the  former  merely  that  it  might  give  greater  precision 


EUROPEAN  EDUCATION   IN   16th   CENTURY        3 

in  writing  and  speaking,  and  the  latter  that  it  might 
furnish  illustrations  in  rhetorical  exercises. 

This  conception  of  education  was  almost  universally- 
held  in  the  sixteenth  century,  by  Protestants  like 
Trotzendorf  and  Sturm,  as  well  as  by  Catholics  like 
Aquaviva  and  the  members  of  the  Society  of  Jesus. 
Nor  was  it  confined  to  elementary  and  secondary 
education ;  for,  as  Professor  Paulsen 1  has  shown,  the 
conquest  of  European  universities  by  the  humanists 
was  complete  by  the  second  decade  of  the  sixteenth 
century.  The  statutes  of  most  of  the  universities  at 
this  time  make  the  speaking  of  the  Latin  compulsory. 
That  at  Ingolstadt  reads:  "A  master  in  a  bursary 
shall  induce  to  the  continual  use  of  Latin  by  verbal 
exhortations  and  by  his  own  example ;  and  shall  also 
appoint  those  who  shall  mark  such  as  speak  the  vul- 
gar tongue  and  shall  receive  from  them  an  irremissible 
penalty."  Again:  "That  the  students  in  their  aca- 
demical exercises  may  learn  by  the  habit  of  speaking 
Latin  to  speak  and  express  themselves  better,  the 
faculty  ordains  that  no  person  placed  by  the  faculty 
upon  a  common  or  other  bursary  shall  dare  to  speak 
German.  Any  one  heard  by  one  of  the  overseers  to 
speak  German  shall  pay  one  kreutzer."  There  grew 
out  of  this  prohibition  a  widespread  system  of  spying. 
The  spies  reported  to  the  university  authorities  on 
such  students  (yulgarisantes  they  were  called)  who 
persisted  in  speaking  in  the  mother-tongue.  In  spite, 
however,  of  statutes,  spies,  fines,  and  floggings,  the 

1  The  German  universities :  their  character  and  historical  devel- 
opment. By  Friedrich  Paulsen.  Authorized  translation  by  Edward 
Delavan  Perry,  with  an  introduction  by  Nicholas  Murray  Butler. 
New  York  and  London :  Macnaillan  &  Co.,  1895.    pp.  xxxi  +  254. 


4  COMENIUS 

boys  in  the  sixteenth  century  spoke  little  Latin  when 
they  were  alone  by  themselves.  Cordier,1  writing  in 
1530,  says,  "Our  boys  always  chatter  French  with 
their  companions ;  or  if  they  try  to  talk  Latin,  cannot 
keep  it  up." 

The  old  ecclesiastical  Latin  of  the  Middle  Ages  had 
been  superseded  by  the  classical  Latin  of  the  Roman 
poets,  and  all  the  energies  of  the  educational  institu- 
tions were  thrown  into  the  acquisition  and  practice  of 
Latin  eloquence.  The  classics  were  read  for  the 
phrases  that  might  be  culled  for  use  in  the  construc- 
tion of  Latin  sentences;  these,  with  disputations, 
declamations,  and  Latin  plays,  were  the  order  of  the 
century.  Since  education  consisted  in  the  acquisition 
of  a  graceful  and  elegant  style,  the  young  learner, 
from  the  first,  applied  himself  to  the  grammatical 
study  of  Latin  authors,  regarding  solely  the  language 
of  the  classics,  and  taking  subject-matter  into  account 
only  when  this  was  necessary  to  understand  the  words. 

There  was  no  study  of  the  mother-tongue  prelimi- 
nary to  the  study  of  the  classics.  Children  began  at 
once  the  study  of  the  Latin  grammar,  and  they  had  to 
write  Latin  verses  before  they  had  been  exercised  in 
compositions,  in  the  vernacular,  or,  for  that  matter, 
before  they  had  been  trained  to  express  their  thoughts 
in  Latin  prose.  And  still  more  remarkable,  as  Oscar 
Browning  points  out,  "  the  Latin  taught  was  not  the 
masculine  language  of  Lucretius  and  Caesar,  but  the 
ornate  and  artificial  diction  of  Horace  and  Virgil,  and, 
above  all,  of  Cicero."  "There  is  no  doubt,"  he  adds, 
"  that  narrow  and  faulty  as  it  was,  it  gave  a  good  edu- 

1  De  corrupti  sermonis  emendatione.  By  Maturin  Cordier. 
Paris,  1530.    Quoted  by  Mr.  Keatinge. 


EUROPEAN  EDUCATION  IN  16th  CENTURY        6 

cation  so  long  as  people  believed  in  it.  To  know 
Horace  and  Virgil  by  heart  became  the  first  duty  of 
the  scholar.  Speeches  in  Parliament  were  considered 
incomplete  if  they  did  not  contain  at  least  one  Latin 
quotation.  A  false  quantity  was  held  to  be  a  greater 
crime  than  a  slip  in  logical  argument.  Cicero  not 
only  influenced  the  education  of  English  statesmen, 
but  had  no  inconsiderable  effect  on  their  conduct." 

The  humanist  educators  of  the  sixteenth  century 
not  only  neglected  the  study  of  the  mother-tongue  — 
they  proscribed  it.  The  Ratio 1  of  the  Jesuits  forbids 
its  use  except  on  holidays,  and  Sturm  at  Strasburg 
abbreviated  the  recreation  periods  of  his  pupils  because 
of  risks  of  speaking  in  the  mother-tongue  on  the  play- 
ground. And  all  this  proscription  of  the  vernacular 
that  students  might  acquire  eloquence  in  a  foreign 
tongue.  Well  does  Raumer2  ask,  "Why  did  they 
continue,  like  a  second  Sisyphus,  their  fruitless 
endeavors  to  metamorphose  German  into  Roman 
youths,  and  to  impart  to  them,  in  defiance  of  the 
laws  of  human  nature,  another  tongue?" 

They  were  themselves  deceived  in  assuming  that 
they  could  call  to  life  the  ancient  culture  of  Rome 
and  Greece.  Indeed,  they  believed  that  they  had  dis- 
covered ways  of  training  which  would  develop  scholars 
capable  of  producing  Latin  works  equal  to  the  master- 
pieces that  they  had  studied  in  their  schools.  John 
Sturm,  one  of  the  most  ardent  of  the  humanists,  said : 


1  For  an  account  of  the  schools  of  the  Jesuits  see  Loyola  and  the 
educational  system  of  the  Jesuits.  By  Thomas  Hughes.  New  York : 
Charles  Scribner's  Sons,  1892.    pp.  302. 

2  Ueschichte  der  Padagogik.  Von  Karl  von  Raumer.  Giitersloh: 
Bertelsmann,  1882. 


6  COMENIUS 

"  The  Komans  had  two  advantages  over  us ;  the  one 
consisted  in  learning  Latin  without  going  to  school, 
and  the  other  in  frequently  seeing  Latin  comedies  and 
tragedies  acted,  and  in  hearing  Latin  orators  speak. 
Could  we  recall  these  advantages  in  our  schools,  why 
could  we  not,  by  persevering  diligence,  gain  what  they 
possessed  by  accident  and  habit  —  namely,  the  power 
of  speaking  Latin  to  perfection?  I  hope  to  see  the 
men  of  the  present  age,  in  their  writing  and  speaking, 
not  merely  followers  of  the  old  masters,  but  equal  to 
those  who  flourished  in  the  noblest  age  of  Athens  and 
Rome."     But  how  misguided  and  mistaken! 

Not  only  did  Latin  monopolize  the  curriculum  of 
the  sixteenth-century  school,  but  the  study  was  pri- 
marily philological,  for  grammatical  structure,  and 
only  secondarily  for  the  content  of  the  literature,  for 
a  correct  understanding  of  the  author.  As  a  matter  of 
fact,  the  method  of  study  was  such  as  to  make  intelli- 
gent comprehension  of  the  author's  thought  next  to  im- 
possible, since  the  humanists  simply  culled  out  phrases 
which  might  be  imitated  and  used  in  the  exercises  of 
style.  Raumer  says  of  this  kind  of  teaching:  "The 
author  was  not  an  end,  but  only  a  means  to  an  end  — 
the  cultivation  of  deified  Roman  eloquence  in  boys. 
And  why?  Precisely  as  the  peacock  was  used  by  the 
jackdaw.  They  borrowed  the  author's  words  and 
phrases,  grouped  them  together,  and  learned  them  by 
heart,  in  order  subsequently  to  apply  them  in  speech 
or  writing.  Borrow  is  too  feeble  an  expression;  for 
the  jackdaw  designed  not  merely  to  borrow  the  pea- 
cock's feathers,  but  to  represent  them  as  his  own. 
The  doctrine  of  imitation,  as  set  forth  by  Sturm  and 
the   others,  was,  after  all,  a  mere  jackdaw  theory. 


EUROPEAN  EDUCATION  IN  16th  CENTURY        1 

The  pupil  was  taught  how,  by  a  slight  alteration,  to 
disguise  phrases  from  Cicero,  and  then  to  use  them 
in  writing  or  speech,  exactly  as  if  they  were  his  own 
productions,  so  adroitly  smuggling  them  in  that  the 
readers  or  hearers  might  not  suspect  from  whence  they 
were  taken.  Says  Sturm:  'When  the  teacher  gives 
out  themes  for  composition,  he  should  draw  attention 
to  those  points  where  imitation  is  desirable,  and  show 
how  similarity  may  be  concealed  by  a  superadded 
variation.'  Again:  'We  must,  in  the  first  place,  take 
care  that  the  similarity  shall  not  be  manifest.  Its 
concealment  may  be  accomplished  in  three  ways  —  by 
adding,  by  taking  away,  and  by  alteration. '  " 

In  this  mad  race  for  Latin  eloquence,  the  sixteenth- 
century  humanists  became  more  and  more  circum- 
scribed in  the  choice  of  authors.  Sturm,  for  example, 
placed  Cicero  at  the  head  of  the  list,  because  of  the 
faultless  models  of  his  eloquence.  The  Jesuits  like- 
wise held  Cicero  in  high  esteem.  Said  one  of  their 
writers,  "Style  should  be  drawn  almost  exclusively 
from  Cicero,  although  the  most  approved  of  the  histo- 
rians need  not  on  that  account  be  overlooked. "  Again : 
"The  pattern  we  should  follow  in  style  is  compre- 
hended in  the  words  of  the  rule,  'imitate  Cicero. '  As 
in  the  study  of  theology  we  follow  the  divine  Thomas 
Aquinas,  and  in  philosophy  Aristotle,  so  in  the 
humanities  Cicero  must  be  regarded  as  our  peculiar 
and  preeminent  leader.  For  he  has  been  crowned  by 
the  palm  of  superior  praise  by  the  common  consent  of 
the  world.  But  some,  misguided  by  a  wilful  and 
self -formed  taste,  have  gone  astray,  preferring  a  style 
totally  different  from  that  of  Cicero ;  such  an  erratic 
course  is  quite  at  variance  with  the  genius  of  our 


8  COMENIUS 

institutions  and  hostile  to  the  spirit  of  prompt  obedi- 
ence." 

This  servile  devotion  to  Cicero,  it  should  be  recalled, 
was  a  marked  departure  from  the  more  varied  and 
richer  curricula  of  the  fifteenth -century  humanists,1 
when  men  of  the  stamp  of  Vittorino  da  Feltre,  Leo- 
nardo Bruni,  Vergarius,  Sylvius,  and  Guarino  were 
the  standard-bearers  of  humanism.  Many  causes  had 
conspired  to  bring  about  this  decadence;  and  perhaps 
the  most  fundamental  cause  was  the  senseless  worship 
of  forms  of  expression.  The  later  humanists  wor- 
shipped the  forms  of  thought.  "  Beauty  of  expression, " 
says  Professor  Laurie,2  "was  regarded  as  inseparable 
from  truth  and  elevation  of  thought.  The  movement 
soon  shared  the  fate  of  all  enthusiasms.  The  new 
form  was  worshipped,  and  to  it  the  spirit  and  sub- 
stance were  subordinated.  Style  became  the  supreme 
object  of  the  educated  classes,  and  successful  imita- 
tion, and  thereafter  laborious  criticism,  became  marks 
of  the  highest  culture." 

This  use  of  the  classics  as  instruments  in  grammati- 
cal drill  and  vehicles  of  communication  had  become 
well-nigh  universal  by  the  middle  of  the  sixteenth 
century.  Erasmus,  himself  one  of  the  most  ardent 
advocates  of  classical  learning,  perceived  apparently 
the  narrowing  tendencies  of  humanistic  training,  and 
urged  that  students  be  taught  to  know  many  things 
besides  Latin  and  Greek  in  order  that  they  might  the 

1  See  the  admirable  sketch  of  the  earlier  humanists :  Vittorino  da 
Feltre  and  other  humanists.  By  William  H.  Woodward.  Cam- 
bridge :  University  Press,  1897.    pp.  256. 

2  John  Amos  Comenius :  his  life  and  educational  work.  By 
S.  S.  Laurie.    Boston :  Willard  Small,  1885.    pp.  229. 


EUROPEAN  EDUCATION  IN  16th  CENTURY        9 

better  comprehend  the  classics.  He  recommended  the 
addition  of  geography,  arithmetic,  and  natural  science 
to  the  school  course. 

And  Melanchthon,  with  all  his  enthusiasm  for  clas- 
sical learning,  thought  the  humanities  insufficient  to 
satisfy  all  the  needs  of  culture.  He  advised  the 
incorporation  of  physics,  mathematics,  and  astronomy 
into  the  curriculum.  "Although  the  nature  of  things 
cannot  be  absolutely  known,  nor  the  marvellous  works 
of  God  traced  to  their  original,  until,  in  the  future 
life,  we  shall  listen  to  the  eternal  counsel  of  the 
Father,"  he  writes,  "nevertheless,  even  amid  this  our 
present  darkness,  every  gleam  and  every  hint  of  har- 
mony of  this  fair  creation  forms  a  step  toward  the 
knowledge  of  God  and  toward  virtue,  whereby  we  our- 
selves shall  also  learn  to  love  and  maintain  order  and 
moderation  in  all  our  acts.  Since  it  is  evident  that 
men  are  endowed  by  their  Creator  with  faculties  fitted 
for  the  contemplation  of  nature,  they  must,  of  neces- 
sity, take  delight  in  investigating  the  elements,  the 
laws,  the  qualities,  and  the  forces  of  the  various  bodies 
by  which  they  are  surrounded." 

As  has  already  been  shown,  however,  the  humanists 
took  little  interest  in  the  study  of  subjects  not  discussed 
by  classical  authors.  Absorbed  in  a  world  of  books, 
as  Mr.  Quick 1  suggests,  they  overlooked  the  world  of 
nature.  Galileo  had  in  vain  tried  to  persuade  them 
to  look  through  his  telescope,  but  they  held  that  truth 
could  not  be  discovered  by  any  such  contrivances  — 
that  it  could  be  arrived  at  only  by  the  comparison  of 
manuscripts.     "No   wonder,"    remarks    Mr.    Quick, 

1  Essays  on  educational  reformers.  By  Robert  Hebert  Quick. 
New  York :  D.  Appleton  &  Co.,  1893.    pp.  560. 


10  COMENIUS 

"  that  they  had  so  little  sympathy  with  children,  and 
did  not  know  how  to  teach  them." 

Fortunately  for  the  history  of  education,  there  were 
critics  in  the  sixteenth  century  who  did  not  conform 
to  the  dogma  of  linguistic  discipline,  and  who  called 
attention  to  the  need  of  educational  reform.  What- 
ever the  merits  of  the  classical  languages,  protested 
these  critics,  they  must  derive  their  value  ultimately 
from  the  rank  they  take  as  literature.  The  protest  of 
Rabelais  early  in  the  century  was  not  only  one  of  the 
first  but  one  of  the  most  effective  charges  against  con- 
temporary practices.  In  his  famous  satire  he  intrusted 
the  young  giant  Gargantua  to  the  care  and  training  of 
the  humanist  educator  Tubal  Holofernes,  who  spent 
five  years  and  a  quarter  in  teaching  him  to  say  his 
ABC's  backward;  thirteen  years  on  Donatus'  Latin 
grammar  and  the  composition  of  Latin  verses  and  sen- 
tences ;  thirty-four  years  more  in  the  study  of  Latin 
eloquence,  after  which  the  schoolmaster  dies,  when,  as 
Eabelais  concluded,  Gargantua  had  grown  more  igno- 
rant, heavy,  and  loutish.  "In  this  confused  and 
ribald  allegory/ '  says  Mr.  James  P.  Munroe,1  "Jitajje- 
Jaig,  led  the  way  out  of  ancient  superstition  into  mod- 
ern science.  More  than  this,  he  taught  in  it  that  the 
study  of  Nature,  observation  of  her  laws,  imitation  of 
her  methods,  must  be  at  the  root  of  every  true  system 
of  education.  He  showed  that  the  Nature  spirit  is  the 
true  spirit  of  good  teaching.  Ever  since  his  day  civil- 
ized mankind  has  been  trying  to  learn  this  lesson  of 
his  and  to  apply  it  in  the  schools. 7For  three  centuries 

i  The  educational  ideal :  an  outline  of  its  growth  in  modern 
times.  By  James  Phinny  Munroe.  Boston:  D.  C.  Heath  &  Co., 
1895.    pp.  262. 


EUROPEAN  EDUCATION  IN  16th   CENTURY      11 

the  leaders  in  education,  under  his  direct  inspiration, 
have  been  slowly  and  painfully  transforming  the  false 
pedagogy  of  the  cloister  into  the  true  pedagogy  of 
out-of-doors.  Writers  and  teachers,  schools  and  uni- 
versities, have  been  engaged  in  a  halting  and  irregular 
struggle  to  transfer  education  from  a  metaphysical  to 
a  physical  basis,  to  lead  it  away  from  the  habit  of 
deductive  speculation  into  one  of  inductive  research. 
This  transfer  Eabelais  made  boldly  and  at  once.  He 
did  not,  of  course,  elaborate  the  educational  ideal  of 
to-day,  but  he  plainly  marked  out  the  lines  upon  which 
that  ideal  is  framed.  He  taught  truth  and  simplicity, 
he  ridiculed  hypocrisy  and  formalism,  he  denounced 
the  worship  of  words,  he  demanded  the  study  of  things, 
he  showed  the  beauty  of  intellectual  health,  of  moral 
discipline,  of  real  piety.  Best  of  all,  he  enunciated 
the  supreme  principle  of  Nature,  which  is  ordered 
freedom." 

Montaigne,1  also,  in  France,  was  equally  severe  in 
his  criticisms  on  the  humanists.  He  denounced  in  no 
uncertain  terms  the  methods  of  introducing  Latin  to 
beginners  and  the  harsh  and  severe  discipline  so  com- 
mon in  the  scjjools  of  Europe  during  the  sixteenth 
century.  "  Education  ought  to  be  carried  on  with  a 
severe  sweetness,"  he  wrote,  "quite  contrary  to  the 
practice  of  our  pedants,  who,  instead  of  tempting  and 
alluring  children  to  a  study  of  language  by  apt  and 
gentle  ways,  do,  in  truth,  present  nothing  before  them 
but  rods  and  ferules,  horror  and  cruelty.  Away  with 
this  violence !  Away  with  this  compulsion !  There  is 
nothing  which  more  completely  dulls  and  degenerates 

1  Montaigne's  Education  of  children.  Translated  by  L.  E.  Rec- 
tor.   New  York :  D.  Appleton  &  Co.,  1899.    pp.  xxiii  + 191. 


12  COMENIUS 

the  nature  of  a  bright  child."  Again:  "Our  schools 
are  houses  of  correction  for  imprisoned  youths;  and 
children  are  made  incorrigible  by  punishment.  Visit 
them  when  the  children  are  getting  their  lessons,  and 
you  will  hear  nothing  but  the  outcries  of  boys  under 
execution  and  the  thundering  noises  of  their  teachers, 
drunk  with  fury.  It  is  a  pernicious  way  to  tempt 
young  and  timorous  souls  to  love  their  books  while 
wearing  a  ferocious  countenance  and  with  a  rod  in 
hand." 

Montaigne  was  equally  convinced  of  the  pedagogic 
error  of  the  humanists  in  regarding  classical  knowledge 
as  synonymous  with  wisdom.  "We  may  become 
learned  from  the  learning  of  others,"  he  said,  "but  we 
never  become  wise  except  by  our  own  wisdom.  .  .  . 
We  are  truly  learned  from  knowing  the  present,  not 
from  knowing  the  past  any  more  than  the  future.  .  .  . 
Yet  we  toil  only  to  stuff  the  memory  and  leave  the 
conscience  and  understanding  void.  And  like  birds 
abroad  to  forage  for  grain,  bring  it  home  in  their  beak, 
without  tasting  it  themselves,  to  feed  their  young,  so 
our  pedants  go  picking  knowledge  here  and  there  out 
of  several  authors,  and  hold  it  at  their  tongue's  end, 
only  to  spit  it  out  and  distribute  it  among  their  pupils." 

Roger  Ascham,1  in  the  quaint  preface  of  his  Schole- 
master,  also  bears  testimony  against  the  harsh  disci- 
pline of  the  sixteenth  century.  During  the  great 
plague  in  London,  in  1563,  Ascham  and  some  friends 
were  dining  at  Windsor  with  Sir  William  Cecil. 
While  there  he  learned  that  many  of  the  students  at 
Eton  had  run  away  because  of  the  severe  punishments 

1  The  scholemaster.  By  Roger  Ascham.  Edited  by  Edward 
Arber.    Boston :  Willard  Small,  1888.    pp.317. 


EUROPEAN  EDUCATION  IN  16th   CENTURY      13 

administered  at  this  famous  public  school.  "  Where- 
upon," says  Ascham,  "Sir  William  took  occasion  to 
wish  that  some  discretion  were  in  many  schoolmasters 
in  using  correction  than  commonly  there  is,  who 
many  times  punish  rather  the  weakness  of  nature  than 
the  fault  of  the  scholar,  whereby  many  scholars  that 
might  else  prove  well,  be  driven  to  hate  learning 
before  they  know  what  learning  meaneth;  and  so  are 
made  willing  to  forsake  their  book,  and  to  be  willing 
to  put  to  any  other  kind  of  living."  This  incident  led 
to  the  composition  of  the  Scholemaster,  which  was  a 
guide  for  "the  bringing  up  of  youth,"  in  which  gentle- 
ness rather  than  severity  is  recommended,  and  "a 
ready  way  to  the  Latin  tongue,"  in  which  an  honest 
effort  is  made  to  simplify  language  teaching  and  adapt 
it  to  the  tastes  and  interests  of  young  learners. 

Richard  Mulcaster,1  another  Englishman  and  human- 
ist of  the  sixteenth  century,  questioned  seriously  the 
wisdom  of  his  associates  and  contemporaries  in 
their  exclusion  of  the  mother-tongue  from  the  course 
of  study.  In  his  Elementarie  he  asked:  "Is  it  not 
a  marvellous  bondage  to  become  servants  to  one 
tongue,  for  learning's  sake,  the  most  part  of  our  time, 
with  loss  of  most  time,  whereas  we  may  have  the  very 
same  treasure  in  our  own  tongue  with  the  gain  of  most 
time?  our  own  bearing  the  joyful  title  of  our  liberty 
and  freedom,  the  Latin  tongue  remembering  us  of  our 
thraldom  and  bondage.  I  love  Eome,  but  London 
better ;  I  favor  Italy,  but  England  more :  I  honor  the 
Latin,  but  I  worship  the  English."  Mr.  Quick  is 
right  in  maintaining  that  "  it  would  have  been  a  vast 

1  Positions.  By  Richard  Mulcaster.  Edited  by  Robert  Hebert 
Quick.    London:  Longmans,  Green  &  Co.,  1888.    pp.  309. 


14  COMENIUS 

gain  to  all  Europe  if  Mulcaster  had  been  followed 
instead  of  Sturm.  He  was  one  of  the  earliest  advo- 
cates of  the  use  of  English  instead  of  Latin,  and  good 
reading  and  writing  in  English  were  to  be  secured 
before  Latin  was  begun." 

These  were  some  of  the  voices  raised  against  the 
bookish  classical  learning  of  the  sixteenth  century; 
but  it  remained  for  Vives,  Bacon,  and  Ratke  to  con- 
vince Europe  of  the  insufficiency  of  the  humanistic 
ideal,  and  for  Comenius,  the  evangelist  of  modern 
pedagogy,  to  bring  about  the  necessary  reforms.  The 
part  played  by  each  in  the  transition  from  humanism 
to  realism,  from  classical  learning  and  philology  to 
modern  thought  and  the  natural  sciences,  will  be  briefly 
traced  in  the  succeeding  chapters  of  this  work. 


CHAPTER   II 

FORERUNNERS  OF  COMENIUS 

Traces  of  the  intellectual  development  of  Comenius.  Vives  a  real- 
ist —  His  early  training  in  Spain  and  France  —  Educational  activ- 
ity in  Belgium  and  England  —  Views  on  the  education  of  women 

—  Theory  of  education  —  Comparison  of  Vives  and  Comenius. 
Bacon  the  founder  of  modern  realism — Views  on  the  education 
of  his  day  —  Attacks  medievalism  —  Study  of  nature  and  the 
inductive  method  —  Individual  differences  among  children. 
Ratke  —  Studies  at  Hamburg  and  Rostock  —  Visits  England  and 
becomes  acquainted  with  the  philosophy  of  Bacon  —  His  plan  of 
education  —  Its  reception  by  the  universities  at  Jena  and  Giessen 

—  Organization  of  the  schools  at  Gotha  —  Call  to  Sweden  —  Sum- 
mary of  Ratke's  views  —  Harmony  of  his  teachings  with  those 
of  Comenius.  Campanella,  Andreae,  and  Bateus  —  Their  influ- 
ence on  the  life  and  teachings  of  Comenius. 

Every  educational  reformer  owes  much,  in  the  way 
of  inspiration  and  suggestion,  to  his  predecessors,  and 
of  none  is  this  more  true  than  of  John  Amos  Comenius. 
Everywhere  in  his  writings  are  to  be  found  traces  of 
the  movement  he  championed,  in  the  writings  of 
Vives,  Bacon,  Ratke,  Bateus,  Campanella,  and  others. 
As  Professor  Nicholas  Murray  Butler  remarks :  "  From 
Ratke  he  learned  something  of  the  way  in  which 
language  teaching,  the  whole  curriculum  of  the  time, 
might  be  reformed;  and  from  Bateus  he  derived  both 
the  title  and  the  plan  of  his  Janua.  Campanella  sug- 
gested to  him  the  necessity  of  the  direct  interrogation 
of  nature  if  knowledge  was  to  progress,  and  Vives 
emphasized  for  him  from  the  same  point  of  view  the 

15 


16  COMENIUS 

defects  of  contemporary  school  practice.  But  it  was 
Bacon's  Instauratio  Magna  that  opened  his  eyes  to  the 
possibilities  of  our  knowledge  of  nature  and  its  place 
in  the  educational  scheme."1  This  obligation  to  his 
predecessors  Comenius  was  the  first  to  recognize. 
And  he  recognized  it  often  and  specifically  by  his  will- 
ing tributes  to  the  help  received  by  him  from  Vives, 
Bacon,  Batke,  and  others. 

Vives 

"Comenius  received  his  first  impulse  as  a  sense- 
realist,  "  says  Baumer,  "  from  the  well-known  Spanish 
pedagogue  John  Lewis  Vives,  who  had  come  out  against 
Aristotle  and  disputation  in  favor  of  a  Christian  mode 
of  philosophizing  and  the  silent  contemplation  of 
nature."  "It  is  better  for  the  pupils  to  ask,  to  inves- 
tigate, than  to  be  forever  disputing  with  one  another," 
said  Vives.  "Yet,"  adds  Comenius,  "Vives  under- 
stood better  where  the  fault  was  than  what  was  the 
remedy."  In  the  preface  to  the  Janica,  Comenius 
quotes  Vives  among  others  as  opposed  to  the  current^ 
methods  of  language  teaching.  y^ 

The  Spanish  educator  was  born  a  hundred  years 
before  Comenius,  of  poor,  but  noble  parentage.  When 
fifteen  years  old  he  was  considered  the  most  brilliant 
pupil  in  the  academy  at  Valencia.  Two  years  later  he 
was  matriculated  in  the  University  of  Paris,  where, 
as  his  biographers  tell  us,  he  was  surrounded  by  the 
Dialecticians,  whose  theology  was  the  most  abstruse 
and  whose  Latin  was  the  most  barbarous.     This  con- 

i  The  place  of  Comenius  in  the  history  of  education.  By  Nich- 
olas Murray  Butler.  Proceedings  of  the  National  Educational 
Association  for  1892. 


FORERUNNERS  OF  COMENIUS  17 

dition  of  affairs  turned  the  young  Spaniard's  thoughts 
toward  educational  reform.  He  realized  in  Paris,  as 
he  had  not  before,  the  uselessness  of  the  empty  dis- 
putations which  occupied  so  much  time  in  the  schools. 

Three  years  were  spent  in  study  at  Paris,  after 
which  Vives  travelled  through  portions  of  Spain  and 
France,  and,  in  1517,  he  settled  with  the  Valdura 
family  in  Bruges  and  married  the  daughter  of  his 
host.  Here  he  wrote  his  allegory  Christi  triumphus, 
in  which  he  holds  up  to  ridicule  the  methods  of  teach- 
ing in  the  University  of  Paris.  A  year  later  he  was 
installed  in  the  University  of  Louvain  as  the  instructor 
of  the  young  Cardinal  de  Croy.  While  here  he  wrote 
a  history  of  philosophy;  made  the  acquaintance  of 
Erasmus;  and  opened  correspondence  with  Thomas 
More  and  other  reformers. 

In  1519  he  visited  Paris  with  Cardinal  de  Croy; 
and,  in  spite  of  his  late  criticisms,  he  was  cordially 
received  by  the  university,  his  scholarship  and  ability 
now  being  recorded  facts.  Two  years  later  De  Croy 
died  without  having  made  any  provision  for  the  sup- 
port of  his  tutor.  Vives  began  at  once  a  commentary 
on  St.  Augustine;  but  his  health  giving  way,  he 
returned  to  Bruges,  where,  in  July,  he  had  a  personal 
interview  with  Thomas  More,  Wolsey,  and  others,  who 
were  in  favor  with  Henry  VIII  of  England.  He 
taught  at  Louvain  during  the  winter  semester  of 
1522-1523,  after  which,  through  the  influence  of  the 
English  dignitaries  already  mentioned,  he  was  called 
to  England. 

In  what  capacity  he  went  to  England  is  hardly 
known.  Some  say  as  the  tutor  of  King  Henry's 
daughter  Mary ;  others  as  a  lecturer  in  the  University 


18  COMENIUS 

of  Oxford.  Certain  it  is  that  he  gave  two  lectures  at 
Oxford,  which  were  attended  by  the  king  and  queen, 
and  that  he  received  the  honorary  degree  of  D.C.L., 
in  1523.  In  1526  appeared  his  treatise  on  the  care  of 
the  poor,  which  he  dedicated  to  the  municipal  council 
of  Bruges.  It  was  one  of  the  first  scientific  treatments 
of  pauperism.  He  maintained  that  it  was  incumbent 
upon  State,  and  not  upon  the  Church  to  care  for  the 
poor.  Buisson  says  of  it,  "Its  suggestions  are  as 
attractive  as  they  are  wise;  and  even  to-day  they 
continue  in  full  force." 

In  1528  he  published  his  pedagogic  classic  on  the 
Christian  education  of  women.  The  mother,  says 
Vives,  like  Cornelia,  should  regard  her  children  as 
her  most  precious  jewels.  She  should  nurse  her  own 
children  because  of  possible  physical  influences  on  the 
child.  The  mother  should  instruct  her  girl  in  all  that 
pertains  to  the  household;  and  early  teach  her  to  read. 
She  should  relate  to  her  stories,  not  empty  fables,  but 
such  as  will  instruct  and  edify  her  and  teach  her  to 
love  virtue  and  hate  vice.  The  mother  should  teach 
her  daughter  that  riches,  power,  praise,  titles,  and 
beauty  are  vain  and  empty  things;  and  that  piety, 
virtue,  bravery,  meekness,  and  culture  are  imperish- 
able virtues.  Strong  discipline  in  the  home  is  urged. 
Lax  discipline,  says  Vives,  makes  a  man  bad,  but  it 
makes  a  woman  a  criminal.  Dolls  should  be  banished 
\r  from  the  nursery  because  they  encourage  vanity  and 
love  of  dress.  Boys  and  girls  should  not  be  instructed 
together,  not  even  during  the  earliest  years  of  child- 
hood. But  women  require  to  be  educated  as  well  as 
men.  This  work,  which  presented  in  stronger  terms 
than  hitherto  the  claims  of  the  education  of  women, 


FORERUNNERS   OF   COMENIUS  19 

was  dedicated  to  Catherine  of  Aragon.     It  was  widely 
republished  and  had  large  influence. 

For  five  years  Vives  had  been  a  distinguished  figure 
at  the  court  of  Henry  VIII,  but  with  the  king's  appli- 
cation for  divorce,  in  1528,  came  a  rupture  of  these 
pleasant  relations.  In  a  letter  to  a  friend  he  says : 
"You  must  have  heard  of  the  troubles  between  the 
king  and  the  queen,  as  it  is  now  talked  of  everywhere. 
I  have  taken  the  side  of  the  queen,  whose  cause  has 
seemed  to  me  just,  and  have  defended  her  by  word  and 
pen.  This  offended  his  Majesty  to  such  degree  that  I 
was  imprisoned  for  six  weeks,  and  only  released  upon 
condition  that  I  would  never  appear  in  the  palace 
again.  I  then  concluded  it  safest  to  return  home  [to 
Bruges];  and,  indeed,  the  queen  advised  me  to  in  a 
secret  letter.  Shortly  after  Cardinal  Campeggio  was 
sent  to  Britain  to  judge  the  cause.  The  king  was  very 
solicitous  that  the  queen  appoint  counsel  to  defend 
her  side  before  Campeggio  and  Wolsey.  She,  there- 
fore, called  me  to  her  aid;  but  I  told  her  plainly  that 
any  defence  before  such  a  court  was  useless,  and  that 
it  would  be  much  better  to  be  condemned  unheard, 
than  with  the  appearance  of  defence.  The  king  sought 
only  to  save  appearances  with  his  people,  that  the 
queen  might  not  appear  to  have  been  unjustly  treated; 
but  he  had  little  regard  for  the  rest.  At  this  the 
queen  was  incensed  that  I  did  not  obey  her  call  instead 
of  following  my  own  good  judgment,  which  is  worth 
more  to  me  than  all  the  princes  of  the  world  together. 
So  it  has  come  about  that  the  king  regards  me  as  his 
adversary,  and  the  queen  regards  me  as  disobedient 
and  opinionated;  and  both  of  them  have  withdrawn 
my  pension." 


20  COMENIUS 

His  closing  years  were  passed  at  Bruges  with  his 
wife's  family;  at  Breda  with  the  Duchess  of  Nassau, 
a  Spanish  lady  who  had  formerly  been  his  pupil;  and 
at  Paris,  where  he  gave  some  courses  of  lectures.  He 
had  struggled  against  a  weak  constitution  all  his  life, 
and  after  his  return  from  England  other  diseases 
developed.  He  died  on  May  6,  1540,  in  his  forty- 
eighth  year,  and  was  buried  in  the  Church  of  St. 
Donat  at  Bruges. 

His  most  considerable  contribution  to  the  philoso- 
phy of  education  appeared  after  his  return  from  Eng- 
land. It  was  entitled  De  disciplinis ;  was  published  in 
three  parts,  in  1531 ;  and  was  dedicated  to  the  King  of 
Portugal.  As  Dr.  Lange  remarks,  this  work  alone 
entitles  Vives  to  large  consideration  as  an  educational 
reformer. 

Vives  justifies,  in  the  introduction,  the  position  he 
assumes  in  regard  to  Aristotle ;  while  he  regards  the 
Greek  as  a  great  philosopher,  he  declares  that  the 
world  has  gained  in  experience  since  Aristotle  wrote, 
and  he  sees  no  reason  why  his  teachings  should  not  be 
set  aside  if  found  to  be  incorrect.  He  has  no  doubt 
but  that  later  generations  will  find  theories  better 
adapted  to  their  ends  than  those  he  himself  advocates, 
but  he  greets  as  a  friend  the  one  who  shall  point  out 
his  errors. 

In  the  first  part  he  treats  of  the  decline  of  the 
sciences.  The  causes  of  this  decline  he  considers  two- 
fold: (1)  Moral;  and  here  he  notes  an  unwillingness 
to  search  for  truth  for  truth's  sake.  Pride  is  the  root 
of  this  evil.  A  student  in  the  University  of  Paris  had 
remarked  to  him,  "  Sooner  than  not  distinguish  myself 
by  founding  some  new  doctrine,  I  would  defend  one  of 


FORERUNNERS  OF  COMENIUS  21 

whose  falsity  I  was  convinced."  This  moral  weakness 
he  thought  altogether  inconsistent  with  the  advance- 
ment of  the  sciences.  (2)  Historical  and  material, 
including  as  causes  the  migration  of  nations  by  which 
existing  orders  of  civilization  have  been  annihilated; 
the  obscurity  of  ancient  manuscripts,  requiring  more 
time  to  decipher  their  meaning  than  it  would  take  to 
discover  from  nature  their  meaning;  the  ever  increas- 
ing use  of  commentaries  in  the  study  of  originals,  in 
which  the  diverse  opinions  of  the  commentators  lead 
farther  from  the  original  sense ;  the  practice  of  scho- 
lastic disputation  which  is  taught  the  pupils  before 
they  know  what  they  are  disputing  about;  and  the 
practice  of  regarding  teaching  as  a  trade  rather  than 
a  profession,  thus  causing  many  bright  minds  to  select 
other  vocations,  and  to  bring  to  the  work  incompetent 
and  coarse  minds. 

The  second  part  treats  of  the  decline  of  grammar, 
and  the  third  part  of  the  art  of  teaching,  in  which  he 
gives  some  most  sane  directions.  Schools  should  be 
located  in  the  most  healthy  part  of  the  community. 
They  should  not  be  too  near  commercial  centres;  at 
the  same  time,  they  should  not  be  too  distant  from  the 
centre  of  population.  As  to  teachers,  they  should 
have  good  academic  training;  they  should  be  skilled 
in  the  art  of  imparting  knowledge ;  and  their  morals 
should  be  such  as  would  furnish  examples  to  their 
pupils.  Covetousness  and  ambition,  above  all  things, 
should  be  unknown  to  them.  Teachers  who  have 
ambition  and  reputation  in  their  minds  are  thereby 
unfitted  for  the  work  of  teaching.  On  this  account, 
the  state  should  fix  the  salaries,  and  the  compensation 
should  be  the  wage  of  honest  men.     There  should  be 


22  COMENIUS 

a  school  in  every  community.  Before  pupils  should 
be  assigned  tasks,  teachers  should  ascertain  their 
mental  capacities  and  characteristics.  They  should 
also  be  privately  tested  four  times  a  year;  and  when 
children  are  found  who  possess  no  taste  for  study  they 
should  be  dismissed  from  the  school.  Corporal  pun- 
ishment should  seldom  be  applied,  and  never  to  such 
a  degree  as  to  humiliate  the  pupils.  Children  should 
be  given  plenty  of  play  time;  and  hearty,  romping 
games  are  especially  recommended.  In  the  matter  of 
method,  Vives  heartily  commends  the  inductive,  — 
from  particulars  to  generals,  —  and  he  urges  such  a 
grouping  of  studies  that  each  new  subject  studied  may 
naturally  grow  out  of  the  preceding  lesson.  While  he 
strongly  advises  the  study  of  the  natural  sciences,  he 
is  less  enthusiastic  here  than  Bacon,  fearing,  as 
he  admits,  that  a  contemplation  of  nature  may  prove 
dangerous  to  those  not  deeply  grounded  in  faith. 

But.  Vives  was  essentially  a  realist  in  his  doctrines 
of .  education ;  and  when  his  views  are  compared  with 
those  of  Comenius,  community  of  ideas  is  at  once 
apparent.  Both  would  begin  education  in  the  home 
and  make  the  mother  the  first  teacher.  Both  realized 
the  need  of  better  organization  and  classification  of 
the  schools.  Both  urged*  reforms  in  the  matter  of 
language  teaching.  Both  considered  education  a  mat- 
ter of  state  concern,  and  urged  pedagogical  training 
for  teachers.  Both  presented  the  claims  of  science 
and  urged  the  coordination  and  correlation  of  the 
different  subjects  of  study.  Both  emphasized  the  value 
of  play  and  the  need  of  physical  training.  Both  advo- 
cated education  for  all  classes  of  both  sexes,  and  both 
exaggerated  the  need  and  importance  of  the  religious 
training  of  the  child. 


FORERUNNERS   OF  COMENIUS  23 

Bacon 

"  Though  there  were  many  before  Bacon,  and  espe- 
cially artists  and  craftsmen,"  says  Raumer,"  who  lived 
in  communion  with  nature,  and  who,  in  manifold  ways, 
transfigured  and  idealized  her,  and  unveiled  her  glory ; 
and,  though  their  sense  for  nature  was  so  highly  culti- 
vated that  they  attained  to  a  practical  understanding  of 
her  ways,  yet  this  understanding  was  at  best  merely 
instinctive :  for  it  led  them  to  no  scientific  deductions 
and  yielded  them  no  thoughtful  and  legitimate  domin- 
ion over  her." 

The  founder  of  modern  realism  was  born  in  London 
on  the  22d  of  January  in  the  year  1561.  When  six- 
teen years  of  age  he  entered  Trinity  College,  Cam- 
bridge, where  he  studied  under  Dr.  John  Whitgift,  a 
noted  professor  of  theology,  and  afterward  archbishop 
of  Canterbury.  He  studied  diligently  the  writings  of 
Aristotle,  but  was  convinced  of  their  inadequacy. 
Writing  of  this  period  he  says :  "  Amid  men  of  sharp 
and  strong  wits,  and  abundance  of  leisure,  and  small 
variety  of  reading,  their  wits  being  shut  up  in  the 
cells  of  a  few  authors,  chiefly  Aristotle,  their  dictator, 
as  their  persons  are  shut  up  in  the  cells  of  monasteries 
and  colleges ;  and  who  knowing  little  history,  either 
of  nature  or  time,  did  out  of  no  great  quantity  of 
matter,  and  infinite  agitation  of  wit,  spin  cobwebs  of 
learning,  admirable  for  the  fineness  of  the  thread  and 
work,  but  of  no  substance  or  profit." 

The  checkered  careerof  Bacon  is  extraneous  to  his 
writings  and  may  be  passed  over  in  silence.  As  noted 
in  the  first  chapter,  the  educational  institutions  of  the 
sixteenth  century  concerned  themselves  wholly  with 


24  COMENIUS 

the  acquisition  and  display  of  Latin  eloquence. 
Grammar  was  studied  with  infinite  labor  and  sorrow 
for  years  that  students  might  acquire  correct  forms  of 
speech ;  logic  that  they  might  express  themselves  with 
precision;  and  a  minimum  of  history  was  taught  that 
ancient  records  might  furnish  ornate  illustrations  in 
speaking  and  writing. 

Erasmus  and  Melanchthon  had  disputed  this  ideal 
of  culture,  but  it  remained  for  Bacon  to  demolish  this 
idol  of  mediae valism.  "Forsooth, "he  says, "we  suffer 
the  penalty  of  our  first  parents'  sin,  and  yet  follow  in 
their  footsteps.  They  desired  to  be  like  God,  and  we, 
their  posterity,  would  be  so  in  a  higher  degree.  For 
we  create  worlds,  direct  and  control  nature,  and,  in 
short,  square  all  things  by  the  measure  of  our  own 
folly,  not  by  the  plummet  of  divine  wisdom,  nor  as  we 
find  them  in  reality.  I  know  not  whether,  for  this 
result  we  are  forced  to  do  violence  to  nature  or  to  our 
own  intelligence  the  most;  but  it  nevertheless  remains 
true,  that  we  stamp  the  seal  of  our  own  image  upon 
the  creatures  and  works  of  God,  instead  of  carefully 
searching  for,  and  acknowledging,  the  seal  of  the 
Creator  manifest  in  them.  Therefore  have  we  lost, 
the  second  time,  and  that  deservedly,  our  empire  over 
the  creatures,  yea,  when  after  and  notwithstanding 
the  fall,  there  was  left  to  us  some  title  to  dominion 
over  the  unwilling  creatures,  so  that  they  could  be 
subjected  and  controlled,  even  this  we  have  lost,  in 
great  part  through  our  pride,  in  that  we  have  desired 
to  be  like  God,  and  to  follow  the  dictates  of  our  own 
reason  alone.  Now  then,  if  there  be  any  humility  in 
the  presence  of  the  Creator,  if  there  be  any  reverence 
for  and  exaltation  of  his  handiwork,  if  there  be  any 


FORERUNNERS   OF   COMENIUS  25 

charity  toward  men,  any  desires  to  relieve  the  woes 
and  sufferings  of  humanity,  any  love  for  the  light  of 
truth,  and  hatred  toward  the  darkness  of  error,  —  I 
would  beseech  men  again  and  again,  to  dismiss  alto- 
gether, or  at  least  for  a  moment  to  put  away  their 
absurd  and  intractable  theories,  which  give  to  assump- 
tions the  dignity  of  hypotheses,  dispense  with  experi- 
ment, and  turn  them  away  from  the  works  of  God. 
Let  them  with  a  teachable  spirit  approach  the  great 
volume  of  creation,  patiently  decipher  its  secret  char- 
acters, and  converse  with  its  lofty  truths;  so  shall 
they  leave  behind  the  delusive  echoes  of  prejudice,  and 
dwell  within  the  perpetual  outgoings  of  divine  wis- 
dom. This  is  that  speech  and  language  whose  lines 
have  gone  out  into  all  the  earth,  and  no  confusion  of 
tongues  has  ever  befallen  it.  This  language  we  should 
all  strive  to  understand,  first  condescending,  like  little 
children,  to  master  its  alphabet." 

Instead  of  training  children  to  interrogate  nature 
for  themselves,  and  to  interpret  the  answers  to  these 
interrogations,  instead  of  going  straight  to  nature  her- 
self, the  schools  are  forever  teaching  what  others 
have  thought  and  written  on  the  subject.  This  pro- 
cedure, according  to  Bacon,  not  only  displays  lack  of 
pedagogic  sense,  but  gives  evidence  of  ignorance  and 
self-conceit,  and  inflicts  the  greatest  injury  on  philoso- 
phy and  learning.  Such  methods  of  instruction,  more- 
over, tend  to  stifle  and  interrupt  all  inquiry.  We  must, 
says  Bacon,  "come  as  new-born  children,  with  open 
and  fresh  minds,  to  the  observation  of  nature.  For 
it  is  no  less  true  in  this  human  kingdom  of  knowledge 
than  in  God's  kingdom  of  heaven,  that  no  man  shall 
(Tnter  into  it  except  as  he  becomes  first  as  a  little  child." 


Q 


^E*fc"fl*4 


OF  TBCs   ^  A 

UNIVERSITY 


26  COMENIUS 

Bacon's  notion,  as  summarized  by  Raumer,  was  that 
"man  must  put  himself  again  in  direct,  close,  and 
personal  contact  with  nature,  and  no  longer  trust  to 
the  confused,  uncertain,  and  arbitrary  accounts  and 
descriptions  of  her  historians  and  would-be  inter- 
preters. From  a  clear  and  correct  observation  and 
perception  of  objects,  their  qualities,  powers,  etc., 
the /investigator  must  proceed,  step  by  step,  till  he 
arrives  at  laws,  and  to  that  degree  of  insight  that  will 
enable  him  to  interpret  the  laws  and  to  analyze  the 
processes  of  nature.  To  this  end  Bacon  proffers  to  us 
his  new  method  —  the  method  of  induction.  With 
the  aid  of  this  method  we  attain  to  an  insight  into 
the  connection  and  natural  relation  of  the  laws  of 
matter,  and  thus,  according  to  him,  we  are  enabled 
through  this  knowledge  to  make  nature  subservient  to 
our  will/* 

This  was,  according  to  Comenius,  the  true  key  to  the 
human  intellect.  But  he  laments  that  Bacon  should 
have  given  us  the  key  and  failed  to  unlock  the  door  to 
the  treasure-house.  But  Bacon  did  more  than  formu- 
late the  laws  of  scientific  induction  for  pedagogic  pur- 
poses :  he  made  possible  the  enrichment  of  the  courses 
of  study  by  the  addition  of  a  wide  range  of  school 
studies.  His  thrusts  at  the  Latin  and  Greek,  as  the 
sole  exponents  of  culture,  were  telling  in  their  effect 
and  made  possible  the  recognition  of  the  vernacular 
themes  in  Comenius'  day.  "The  wisdom  of  the 
Greeks,"  he  says,  "was  rhetorical;  it  expended  itself 
upon  words,  and  it  had  little  to  do  with  the  search 
after  truth."  Speaking  again  of  classical  culture,  he 
says :  "  These  older  generations  fell  short  of  many  of 
our  present  knowledges  j  they  know  but  a  small  part 


FORERUNNERS   OF   COMENIUS  27 

of  the  world,  and  but  a  brief  period  of  history.  We, 
on  the  contrary,  are  acquainted  with  a  far  greater 
extent  of  the  world,  besides  having  discovered  a  new 
hemisphere,  and  we  look  back  and  survey  long  periods 
of  history." 

Bacon  recognized  great  individual  differences  in  the  k 
mental  capacities  of  children,  and  he  urged  that  these 
differences  and  special  tastes  be  taken  into  account  by 
the  teachers.  He  says:  "The  natural  bent  of  the 
individual  minds  should  be  so  far  encouraged  that  a 
student  who  shall  learn  all  that  is  required  of  him 
may  be  allowed  time  in  which  to  pursue  a  favorite 
study.  And,  furthermore,  it  is  worth  while  to  con- 
sider, and  I  think  this  point  has  not  hitherto  received 
the  attention  which  its  importance  demands,  that  there 
are  two  distinct  modes  of  training  the  mind  to  a  free 
and  appropriate  use  of  its  faculties.  The  one  begins 
with  the  easiest,  and  so  proceeds  to  the  more  difficult;  * 
the  other,  at  the  outset,  presses  the  pupil  with  the 
more  difficult  tasks,  and,  after  he  has  mastered  these, 
turns  him  to  pleasanter  and  easier  ones :  for  it  is  one 
method  to  practise  swimming  with  bladders,  and 
another  to  practise  dancing  with  heavy  shoes.  It  is 
beyond  all  estimate  how  a  judicious  blending  of  these 
two  methods  will  profit  both  the  mental  and  the  bodily 
powers.  And  so  to  select  and  assign  topics  of  instruc- 
tion as  to  adapt  them  to  the  individual  capabilities 
of  the  pupils,  —  this,  too,  requires  a  special  experi- 
ence and  judgment.  A  close  observation  and  an  accu- 
rate knowledge  of  the  different  natures  of  the  pupils 
are  due  from  teachers  to  the  parents  of  these  pupils, 
that  they  may  choose  an  occupation  in  life  for  their 
'sons  accordingly.     And  note  further,  that  not  only 


28  COMENIUS 

does  every  one  make  more  rapid  progress  in  those 
studies  to  which  his  nature  inclines  him,  but,  again, 
that  a  natural  disinclination,  in  whatever  direction, 
may  be  overcome  by  the  help  of  special  studies.  For 
instance,  if  a  boy  has  a  light,  inattentive,  inconstant 
spirit,  so  that  he  is  easily  diverted,  and  his  attention 
cannot  be  readily  fixed,  he  will  find  advantage  in  the 
mathematics,  in  which  a  demonstration  must  be  com- 
menced anew  whenever  the  thought  wanders  even  for 
a  moment." 

These  citations  will  suggest  parallels  in  the  aims  of 
the  two  great  reformers.  Both  sought  to  introduce 
the  student  to  nature  at  first  hand.  Both  aimed  to 
reorganize  the  sciences  into  one  great  body  of  coordi- 
nated knowledge.  Both  emphasized  the  value  of  the 
inductive  method  in  the  development  of  subjects  of 
study.  Bacon  said :  "  A  good  method  will  solve  all 
'problems.  A  cripple  on  the  right  path  will  beat  a 
racer  on  the  wrong  path."  Said  Comenius:  "The 
secret  of  education  lies  in  method."  Again:  "There 
is  no  difficulty  in  learning  Latin :  what  we  want  is  a 
good  method." 

Ratke 

Although  but  little  more  than  twenty  years  the  senior 
of  Comenius,  Ratke's  mental  development  was  less 
tardy,  so  that  when  the  Moravian  was  a  young  col- 
legian at  Herborn,  Ratke  was  enjoying  the  full  flush 
of  popularity  as  an  educational  reformer.  Born  at 
Wilster  in  Holstein  (Germany),  in  1571,  he  trained  in 
the  gymnasium  at  Hamburg,  and  later  studied  philoso- 
phy at  Rostock.  Later  he  travelled  in  England  and 
Holland ;  studied  Hebrew  and  Arabic,  and  formulated 


FORERUNNERS   OF   COMENIUS  29 

the  plan  of  education  which  made  him  famous  as  a 
reformer.  He  attached  great  value  to  his  plan  and 
expressed  great  unwillingness  to  divulge  it  without 
adequate  remuneration.  He  made  known  his  contem- 
plated reforms  at  a  diet  oythe  German  Empire,  held 
at  Frankfort  on  the  12th'of  May,  1612.  They  were 
threefold:  (1)  To  teach  Latin,  Greek,  or  Hebrew,  or 
any  other  language,  to  young  or  old  in  a  very  short 
time;  (2)  to  establish  schools  in  which  the  arts  and 
sciences  should  be  taught  and  extended ;  (3)  to  intro- 
duce a  uniform  speech  throughout  the  empire,  and,  at 
the  same  time,  uniform  government  and  religion.  He 
proposed  to  follow  the  order  and  course  of  nature,  and 
teach  first  the  mother-tongue,  after  this  Hebrew  and 
Greek,  as  being  the  tongues  of  the  original  text  of  the 
Bible,  and,  lastly,  Latin. 

Through  the  influence  of  the  princes  (and  more  espe- 
cially by  the  encouragement  of  the  Duchess  Dorothea 
of  Weimar),  the  plans  of  Ratke  were  submitted  to  a 
commission  selected  from  the  faculties  of  the  univer- 
sities at  Jena  and  Giessen,  —  Professors  Grawer, 
Brendel,  Walther,  and  Wolf  representing  Jena  and 
Professors  Helwig  and  Jung,  Giessen.  The  report 
was  favorable  to  Ratke.  Professor  Helwig,  who  was 
one  of  the  best  linguists  of  his  day,  was  the  spokes- 
man for  Giessen,  and  he  accepted  Ratke's  views  with 
great  enthusiasm.  "By  diligent  reflection  and  long 
practice,"  he  says,  "Ratke  has  discovered  a  valuable 
method  by  which  good  arts  and  languages  can  be 
taught  and  studied  more  easily,  quickly,  and  correctly 
than  has  been  usual  in  the  schools.  Ratke's  method 
is  more  practicable  in  the  arts  than  in  the  sciences, 
since  arts  and  sciences  are  by  their  nature  consistent 


30  COMENIUS 

with  themselves,  while  the  languages,  on  the  contrary, 
by  long  use  have  acquired  many  inaccuracies." 

Professor  Helwig  commends  especially  the  method- 
ology in  Katke's  plan,  and  urges  that  we  must  con- 
sider not  only  the  knowledge  to  be  imparted,  but  as 
well  the  method  of  imparting  knowledge.  He  says : 
"Nature  does  much,  it  is  true,  but  when  art  assists 
her,  her  work  is  much  more  certain  and  complete. 
Therefore  it  is  necessary  that  there  should  be  an  espe- 
cial art  to  which  any  one  who  desires  to  teach  can 
adhere,  so  that  he  shall  not  teach  by  mere  opinion  and 
guess,  nor  by  native  instinct  alone,  but  by  the  rules  of 
his  art;  just  as  he  who  would  speak  correctly  by  the 
rules  of  grammar,  and  he  who  would  sing  correctly  by 
the  rules  of  music.  This  art  of  teaching,  like  the  art 
of  logic,  applies  to  all  languages,  arts,  and  sciences. 
It  discusses  among  other  things  how  to  distinguish 
among  minds  and  gifts,  so  that  the  quicker  may  not 
be  delayed,  and  that,  on  the  contrary,  those  who  are 
by  nature  not  so  quick  may  not  remain  behind;  how 
and  in  what  order  to  arrange  the  exercises;  how  to 
assist  the  understanding;  how  to  strengthen  the 
memory;  how  to  sharpen  the  intellect  without  vio- 
lence and  after  the  true  course  of  nature.  This  art  of 
teaching,  no  less  than  other  arts,  has  its  fixed  laws 
and  rules,  founded  not  only  upon  the  nature  and 
understanding  of  man,  but  upon  the  peculiarities  of 
languages,  arts,  and  sciences;  and  it  admits  of  no  ways 
of  teaching  which  are  not  deduced  from  sure  grounds 
and  founded  upon  proof."  The  Jena  professors  were 
no  less  favorable  with  regard  to  this  new  art  of 
teaching. 

The  influence  of  this  report  on  the  fame  of  Eatke 


FORERUNNERS   OF   COMENIUS  31 

was  far-reaching.  The  following  year  (1614)  he  was 
invited  to  Augsburg  to  reform  the  schools  of  that  city. 
This  invitation  was  the  outgrowth  of  a  study  of  his 
plan  by  David  Hoschel,  the  principal  of  St.  Anne's 
School,  and  two  other  teachers  appointed  by  the  city 
to  accompany  him  to  Frankfort  and  aid  him  in  the 
investigation.  They  reported  that  Katke  had  so  far 
explained  his  method  to  them  that  they  were  satisfied 
and  pleased  with  it;  and  the  invitation  to  Eatke 
promptly  followed.  Beyond  a  few  monographs  by  the 
Augsburg  disciples,  based  on  his  method,  and  inspired 
doubtless  by  his  sojourn  there,  we  are  altogether  with- 
out evidence  of  the  success  or  failure  of  the  reforms 
at  Augsburg. 

Early  in  1616,  Prince  Ludwig  of  Anhalt-Gotha 
yielded  to  the  persuasions  of  his  sister,  the  Duchess 
Dorothea  of  Weimar,  and  invited  Eatke  to  Gotha  to 
organize  the  schools  there  in  accordance  with  his 
views.  He  engaged  to  organize  and  supervise  the 
schools  and  to  instruct  and  train  the  teachers,  but  he 
bound  the  prince  to  exact  from  each  teacher  a  promise 
not  to  divulge  his  method  to  any  one. 

A  printing-office  was  established  at  Gotha  to  supply 
the  books  required  by  the  new  order.  Fonts  of  type 
in  six  languages  were  imported  from  Holland,  and 
four  compositors  and  two  pressmen  were  brought  from 
Rostock  and  Jena.  The  people  of  Gotha  were  required 
by  the  prince  to  send  their  children  to  the  schools 
organized  by  Ratke.  Two  hundred  and  thirty-one 
boys  and  two  hundred  and  two  girls  were  enrolled. 

The  school  was  graded  into  six  classes.  The  mother- 
tongue  was  taught  in  the  lowest  classes;  Latin  was 
begun  in  the  fourth,  and  Greek  in  the  sixth.     He 


32  COMENIUS 

required  that  the  teacher  in  the  lowest  class  should  be 
a  man  of  kind  manners,  and  that  he  need  know  no 
language  but  the  German.  This  scandalized  the  whole 
German  nation.  A  schoolmaster  ignorant  of  Latin! 
Critics  appeared  from  the  first  with  the  most  cogent 
reasons  for  distrusting  the  "new  methods."  But 
Ratke  had  the  confidence  of  the  prince,  and  all  went 
merrily  for  a  time.  The  instruction  was  simplified; 
and,  besides  the  mother-tongue,  arithmetic,  singing, 
and  religion  were  taught. 

But  he  encountered  numerous  obstacles  at  Gotha: 
the  teachers  of  the  town,  it  would  appear,  did  not 
fully  share  his  views;  the  town  adhered  to  the 
Reformed  Church  and  Ratke  was  a  Lutheran,  —  a  fact 
which  caused  no  end  of  trouble;  and  the  prince  was 
not  altogether  satisfied  with  the  fulfilment  of  Ratke's 
promises  of  reform.  The  pastor  of  the  Reformed 
Church  of  Gotha  preferred  formal  charges  of  hetero- 
doxy against  him,  and  maintained,  besides,  that  Ratke 
made  too  little  provision  for  the  study  of  music  and 
the  catechism;  that  too  much  time  was  given  to 
recreation;  that  the  discipline  was  altogether  too 
mild;  and  that  the  children  were  permitted  to  pass 
from  one  study  to  another  too  rapidly.  Singular 
charges,  these!  And  the  more  singular  when  one 
recalls  the  long  hours  and  the  harsh  discipline  of  the 
seventeenth  century. 

The  opposition  was  strong,  and  at  the  end  of  eigh- 
teen months  the  Gotha  experiment  was  brought  to  an 
abrupt  close.  Ratke  was  not  only  dismissed,  but  was 
imprisoned  on  the  charge  that  he  "  had  claimed  and 
promised  more  than  he  knew  that  he  could  bring  to 
pass."     After  spending  the  best  of  a  year  in  prison, 


FORERUNNERS  OF  COMENIUS  33 

he  signed  a  declaration  in  which  he  assented  to  the 
charges.  Then  the  prince  released  him.  He  went  to 
Magdeburg,  where  he  was  well  received  by  the  school 
authorities;  but  the  ecclesiastical  dignitaries  of  the 
city  were  soon  at  war  with  him,  and  he  moved  on  to 
Eudolstadt,  where  he  was  cordially  received  by  the 
Princess  Anna  Sophia,  wife  of  Prince  Gunther  of 
Swarzburg-Eudolstadt. 

Subsequently  Oxenstiern,  the  chancellor  of  Sweden, 
sought  his  services  in  the  reformation  of  the  Swedish 
schools;, but  instead  of  the  requested  interview,  he 
sent  the  chancellor  a  thick  quarto.  "  I  accomplished 
this  wearisome  labor,"  says  Oxenstiern;  "and  after  I 
had  read  the  whole  book  through,  I  found  that  he  had 
not  ill  displayed  the  faults  of  the  schools,  but  his 
remedies  did  not  seem  to  me  adequate."  Ratke  died 
shortly  afterward  at  the  age  of  sixty-four  years. 

Katke's  contribution  to  education  was  chiefly  in  the 
matter  of  methodology.  His  leading  principles  were : 
(1)  In  everything  we  should  follow  the  order  of  nature. 
There  is  a  certain  natural  sequence  along  which  the 
human  intelligence  moves  in  the  acquisition  of  knowl- 
edge. This  sequence  must  be  studied,  and  instruction 
must  be  based  on  a  knowledge  of  it.  (2)  One  thing 
at  a  time.  Each  subject  of  study  should  be  orderly 
developed  and  thoroughly  dealt  with  before  proceeding 
to  the  next.  (3)  There  should  be  frequent  repetition. 
It  is  astonishing  what  may  be  accomplished  by  the 
frequent  repetition  of  one  thing.  (4)  Everything  first 
in  the  mother-tongue.  The  first  thinking  should 
always  be  in  the  vernacular.  Whatever  the  vocation, 
the  pupil  should  learn  to  express  himself  in  the 
mother-tongue.      After  the  mother-tongue  has  been 


34  COMENIUS 

mastered,  the  other  languages  may  be  studied. 
(5)  Everything  without  compulsion.  Children  can- 
not be  whipped  into  learning  or  wishing  to  learn;  by 
compulsion  and  blows  they  are  so  disgusted  with  their 
studies  that  study  becomes  hateful  to  them.  More- 
over, it  is  contrary  to  nature  to  flog  children  for  not 
remembering  what  has  been  taught  them.  If  they 
had  been  properly  taught  they  would  have  remem- 
bered, and  blows  would  have  been  unnecessary.  Chil- 
dren should  be  taught  to  love  and  reverence  —  not  to 
fear  their  teachers.  (6)  Nothing  should  be  learned  by 
rote.  Learning  by  heart  weakens  the  understanding. 
If  a  subject  has  been  well  developed,  and  has  been 
impressed  upon  the  mind  by  frequent  repetition,  the 
memory  of  it  will  follow  without  any  pains.  Fre- 
quent hours  of  recreation  are  advised;  in  fact,  no  two 
lessons  should  come  immediately  together.  (7)  A  defi- 
nite method  (and  a  uniform  method)  for  all  studies. 
In  the  languages,  arts,  and  sciences,  there  must  be  a 
conformity  in  the  methods  of  teaching,  text-books 
used,  and  precepts  given.  The  German  grammar,  for 
instance,  must  agree  with  the  Hebrew  and  the  Greek 
as  far  as  the  idioms  of  the  language  will  permit. 
(8)  The  tiling  itself  should  first  be  studied,  and  then 
whatever  explains  it.  Study  first  the  literature  of  a 
language  and  then  its  grammar.  A  basis  of  material 
must  first  be  laid  in  the  mind  before  rules  can  be 
applied.  He  admits  that  many  of  the  grammars  fur- 
nish examples  with  the  rules;  but  these  examples 
"come  together  from  all  sorts  of  authors,  like  mixed 
fodder  in  a  manger."  (9)  Everything  must  be  learned 
by  experience  and  examination.  Nothing  is  to  be 
taken  on  authority.     It  will  be  recalled  that  Ratke 


FORERUNNERS   OF   COMENIUS  35 

visited  England  after  the  completion  of  his  studies  at 
Rostock;  and  it  is  altogether  likely  that  while  there 
he  became  a  convert  to  induction  and  the  philosophy 
of  Bacon. 

In  most  particulars  Eatke  and  Comenius  were  in 
harmony.  Both  urged  that  the  study  of  things  should 
precede  or  be  united  with  the  study  of  words;  that 
knowledge  should  be  communicated  through  appeals 
to  the  senses;  that  all  linguistic  study  should  begin 
with  the  mother-tongue;  that  methods  of  teaching 
should  be  in  accordance  with  the  laws  of  nature ;  and 
that  progress  in  studies  should  be  based  not  on 
compulsion,  but  on  the  interest  aroused  in  the  pupils. 

Campanella,  Andrece,  and  Bateus 

Comenius  derived  many  of  his  philosophic  concepts 
from  the  Dominican  reformer,  Thomas  Cam  panel  la, 
whose  writings  influenced  him  powerfully,  at  least 
during  his  student  years  at  Herborn  and  Heidelberg. 
The  writings  of  Campanella  convinced  him  of  the 
unwisdom  of  the  study  of  nature  from  the  works  of 
Aristotle.  Books,  Campanella  had  declared,  are  but 
dead  copies  of  life,  and  are  full  of  error  and  decep- 
tion. We  must  ourselves  explore  nature  and  write 
down  our  own  thoughts,  the  living  mirror  which  shows 
the  reflection  of  God's  countenance.  These  protests 
against  scholasticism  found  a  responsive  chord  in  the 
thoughts  of  the  young  Comenius.  >* 

In  the  preface  to  the  Prodrotmis  Comenius  is  unre- 
served in  his  expression  of  obligations  to  his  prede- 
cessors. "Who,  indeed,  should  have  the  first  place," 
he  says,  "but  John  Valentine  Andrese,  a  man  of  nimble 


36  COMENIUS 

and  clear  brain."  The  court  preacher  of  Stuttgart  had 
strongly  impressed  Coraenius  by  his  deep  love  for 
Christian  ideals  and  his  warm  enthusiasm  for  their 
realization  in  practical  life,  as  well  as  by  his  humor- 
ous polemics  against  the  dead  scholasticism  of  his  day. 
Comenius  incorporates  in  his  Great  didactic  a  brief  by 
Andreae  on  "the  use  of  the  art  of  teaching,"  in  which 
he  maintains  (1)  that  parents  up  to  this  time  have 
been  uncertain  how  much  to  expect  from  their  chil- 
dren; (2)  that  schoolmasters,  the  greater  number  of 
whom  have  been  ignorant  of  their  art,  have  exhausted 
their  energies  and  worn  themselves  out  in  their  efforts 
to  fulfil  their  duty;  (3)  that  students  should  master 
the  sciences  without  difficulty,  tedium,  or  blows,  as  if 
in  sport  and  in  merriment;  (4)  that  schools  should 
become  places  of  amusement,  houses  of  delight  and 
attraction,  and  the  work  so  adjusted  that  students  of 
whatever  capacity  might  ^attain  a  high  standard  of 
development;  (5)  that  states  should  exist  for  the 
development  of  the  young ;  (6)  that  schools  should  be 
so  efficient  that  the  Church  may  never  lack  learned 
doctors,  and  the  learned  doctors  lack  suitable  hearers ; 
and  (7)  that  the  schools  may  be  so  reformed  that  they 
may  give  a  more  exact  and  universal  culture  of  the 
intellect,  and  that  Christian  youths  may  be  more  fer- 
vently stirred  up  to  vigor  of  mind  and  love  of  heavenly 
things.  "Let  none,  therefore,"  says  Andrese,  "with- 
draw his  thoughts,  desires,  strength,  and  resources 
from  such  a  sacred  undertaking.  It  is  inglorious  to 
despair  of  progress  and  wrong  to  despise  the  counsel  of 
others." 

The  obligation  of  Comenius  to  William  Bateus,  the 
Irish  Jesuit,  was  not  great,  although  he  makes  free 


FORERUNNERS  OF  COMENIUS  37 

acknowledgment  of  the  same  in  the  Janua.  Indeed, 
the  plan  of  the  Janua  was  well  formulated  before  he 
knew  of  the  existence  of  the  Jesuit  father's  book. 
He  made  known  the  plan  of  his  Janua  to  some  friends, 
who  told  him  that  Bateus  had  already  published  a 
similar  work.  He  was  not  content  until  he  had  pro- 
cured a  copy  of  the  book.  "  The  idea,"  says  Comenius, 
"  was  better  than  the  execution.  Nevertheless,  as  he 
was  the  prime  inventor,  I  thankfully  acknowledge  it, 
nor  will  I  upbraid  him  for  those  errors  he  has  com- 
mitted." This  willing  recognition  of  his  obligation 
to  a  wide  range  of  educational  writers  is  proof  of  the 
declaration  he  often  made,  "  I  care  not  whether  I  act 
the  part  of  teacher  or  learner." 


CHAPTER  III 

BOYHOOD  AND  EARLY  LIFE  OF  COMENIUS:    1592-1628 

Ancestry  of  Comenius  —  Attends  the  village  school  at  Strasnitz  — 
Studies  Latin  in  the  gymnasium  at  Prerau  —  Character  of  the 
Latin  schools  of  his  day  —  Enters  the  college  at  Her  horn  —  Studies 
theology  and  philosophy  — Inspired  by  the  teachings  of_Alstei=- 
Makes  the  acquaintance  of  the  writings  of  Ratke  —  Continues  his 
studies  at  Heidelberg  —  Begins  his  career  as  a  teacher  at  Prerau 
—  Ordained  as  a  clergyman  —  Installed  as  pastor  and  school 
superintendent  at  Fulneck  —  Persecution. 

Many  of  the  facts  concerning  the  early  life  of  John 
Amos  Comenius  are  shrouded  in  obscurity.  It  is 
certain,  however,  that  he  was  born  in  the  village  of 
Nivnitz  in  Moravia  (now  a  province  of  Austria)  on 
the  28th  day  of  March,  in  the  year  1592.  Nivnitz 
then,  as  now,  was  little  more  than  a  country  market 
town  and  settled  quite  largely  by  members  of  the 
religious  organization  known  as  Moravian  Brethren. 
The  father  and  mother  of  Comenius,  Martin  and  Anna 
Komensky,  were  influential  members  of  the  brother- 
hood, who  had  settled  here  some  years  previous  with 
other  followers  of  John  Hus,  the  Bohemian  reformer 
and  martyr.  The  tradition  that  Martin  Komensky 
was  a  miller  by  trade  does  not  seem  to  be  well  authen- 
ticated. Besides  John  Amos,  three  daughters  were 
born  to  Martin  and  Anna  Komensky,  —  Ludmilla, 
Susanna,  and  Margaret,  —but  the  three  girls  died  in 
early  childhood. 

38 


BOYHOOD  AND  EARLY  LIFE   OE   COMENIUS     39 

Martin  Komensky  died  in  1604, 1  and  his  wife  sur- 
vived him  less  than  a  year.  Left  an  orphan  at  the 
early  age  of  twelve  years,  Comenius  was  intrusted  to 
the  care  and  training  of  an  improvident  aunt,  who 
soon  made  way  with  his  inheritance.  In  this,  as 
in  the  neglect  of  his  school  training,  the  incom- 
petence of  the  foster  parent  is  clearly  apparent.  For 
something  more  than  four  years  the  lad  attended 
the  village  school  at  Strasnitz.  But,  as  he  himself 
tells  us,  the  curriculum  was  narrow  and  the  teaching 
poor.  While  here  Comenius  formed  the  acquaintance 
of  a  schoolfellow  named  Nicholas  Drabik,  through 
whose  prophetic  visions  he  was  so  ignominiously  led 
astray  in  his  later  life,  and  so  bitterly  reproached  by 
his  contemporaries.  "It  was  a  strange  irony  of  fate," 
remarks  Mr.  Keatinge,  "that  a  wanderer  like 
Comenius,  when  only  eleven  years  old  and  in  his 
native  land,  should  commence  the  intimacy  that  was 
to  embitter  his  old  age  in  Amsterdam."  But,  as  Ben- 
ham  notes,  the  fact  that  the  matter  was  so  soon  for- 
gotten shows  that  the  character  of  Comenius  received 
no  indelible  stain  by  the  unfortunate  alliance,  even 
though  he  excited  the  ridicule  and  disrespect,  and 
even  the  contempt,  of  his  contemporaries. 

At  the  advanced  age  of  sixteen  years,  he  was  ini- 
tiated into  the  mysteries  of  classical  learning  in  the 
Latin  school  at  Prerau,  where  he  studied  for  two 
years.  A  fairly  accurate  notion  of  his  studies  during 
this  period  may  be  gained  from  a  glance  at  the  course 
of  study  in  a  contemporary  Latin  school   here^th 

1 1  am  aware  that  Comenius  says  that  his  father  died  in  1G02 ;  hut 
the  evidence  which  Vrbka  has  adduced  seems  to  me  conclusive  that 
the  senior  Komensky  died  two  years  later. 


7 


40  COMENIUS 

reproduced  in  translation  from  the  Bohemian.1  The 
schedule  of  hours  in  the  second  grade  of  this  school 
was  as  follows :  In  the  morning,  during  the  first  hour, 
repetition  of  grammar  lesson  from  memory  and  expla- 
nation of  the  next  day's  grammar  lesson.  During  the 
second  hour,  the  dialogues  of  Castalio;  and  the  third 
hour,  the  recitation  of  Castalio' s  dialogues  in  the 
Bohemian,  and  the  grammatical  analysis  of  the  words 
and  conversation  of  the  lesson.  In  the  afternoon, 
during  the  first  hour,  writing  and  singing;  the  second 
hour,  explanation  of  the  writings  of  Cicero  according 
to  Sturm's  edition,  and  grammatical  analysis;  and  the 
third  hour,  exercises  in  words  and  sayings.  This  was 
the  programme  for  Mondays,  Tuesdays,  Thursdays,  and 
Saturdays.  On  Wednesdays  there  was  but  one  lesson 
in  the  morning  and  one  in  the  afternoon.  In  the 
morning  the  catechism  was  recited;  in  addition,"  imi- 
tative exercises  for  the  formation  of  style.  In  the 
afternoon,  the  writing  of  short  words  and  a  recapitu- 
lation of  the  week's  lessons. 

The  programme  for  the  third  grade  was  as  follows : 
In  the  forenoon  of  Mondays,  Tuesdays,  Thursdays, 
and  Fridays :  — 

First  hour.  —  Repetition  of  Latin  rules  in  the 
mother-tongue. 

Second  hour.  —  Exposition  of  the  conversations  of 
John  Lewis  Vives. 

Third  hour.  —  Repetition  of  the  above,  and  Bohe- 
mian exercises  from  the  text. 

In  the  afternoon  of  the  same  days,  first  hour,  writ- 
ing and  singing ;  second  hour,  Greek  grammar  and  the 

1  Rukovtf  Skolslvi  Obecneho.  By  Karel  Toubenek  and  Kare] 
Vorovka.    Prague,  1892.    Translated  by  Miss  Clara  Vostrovsky. 


BOYHOOD  AND  EARLY  LIFE  OE  COMENIUS     41 

collected  writings  of  John  Sturm;  and  third  hour, 
exposition  of  Greek  proverbs  from  the  New  Testa- 
ment, together  with  grammatical  analysis  of  the  same. 
This  class  had  for  its  forenoon  lesson  on  Wednesdays 
the  catechism  and  exercises  in  the  Bohemian,  and  in 
the  afternoon  singing  and  writing.  In  the  summer  the 
more  industrious  pupils  were  excused  from  the  lessons  on 
Wednesday  afternoons. 

One  period  on  Saturday  was  devoted  to  a  weekly 
review;  and  on  Sunday  morning  a  chapter  was  read 
from  the  New  Testament,  the  same  explained  in  Greek 
(to  all  grades  above  the  second),  and  all  the  students 
attended  church.  In  the  afternoon  there  was  preach- 
ing again  and  more  reading  from  the  New  Testament. 

Such  we  may  suppose  to  have  been  the  character  of 
his  studies  at  Prerau  during  the  two  years  from  1608 
to  1610.  Because  of  his  maturity,  he  appreciated 
most  keenly  the  faults  of  current  humanistic  methods 
of  teaching.'  As  one  of  his  biographers  remarks: 
"  The  defects  of  this  early  education  were  the  seeds 
from  which  sprang  the  whole  of  his  didactic  efforts. 
Considerably  older  than  his  schoolfellows,  he  was  able 
to  criticise  the  methods  and  speedily  arrive  at  the  con- 
clusion that  the  lack  of  progress  was  due  more  to  the 
inefficiency  of  the  teachers  than  to  the  idleness  of 
their  pupils.  From  this  time  onward,  he  began  to 
devise  new  methods  of  class  instruction  and  better 
schemes  of  study.  From  the  vivid  memory  of  the  hor- 
rors through  which  he  had  passed,  of  the  thousand  and 
one  rules  that  had  to  be  learned  by  rote  before  they 
were  understood,  of  the  monotonous  study  of  grammar, 
only  diversified  by  the  maddening  effort  to  translate 
Latin  authors  without  the  assistance  of  suitable  die- 


42  COMENIUS 

tionaries  or  commentaries,  sprang  that  intense  sym- 
pathy with  beginners  which  characterizes  his  whole 
life  and  gives  practical  worth  to  every  precept  that  he 
enunciated." 

After  two  years  in  the  Latin  school  at  Prerau,  he 
entered  the  college  at  Herborn  on  the  30th  of  March, 
1611.  The  University  of  Prague  was  at  this  time  in 
the  hands  of  the  Utraquists,  whose  unfriendly  attitude 
toward  the  Moravian  Brethren  led  to  the  selection  of 
a  German  university  for  his  higher  course  of  instruc- 
tion. He  had  determined  to  qualify  for  the  ministry, 
and  the  institution  at  Herborn  at  this  time  afforded 
unusual  opportunities  for  the  study  of  theology. 
Doubtless  another  factor  in  the  selection  of  Herborn 
was  the  fact  that  John  Henry  Alsted,  one  of  the  most 
distinguished  theological  and  philosophical  professors 
of  the  day,  was  lecturing  there,  and  aspiring  youths 
of  the  temperament  of  Comenius  naturally  gravitated 
toward  this  centre  of  fresh  thought.  Although  but 
four  years  older  than  Comenius,  Alsted  was  the  most 
commanding  figure  in  the  academic  circles  of  Europe 
at  this  time.  He  had  travelled  extensively;  had  made 
the  acquaintance  of  most  of  the  learned  men  in  Europe 
worth  knowing;  and  had  advocated  views  of  education 
which  were  new  and  startling. 

For  twenty-seven  years  Herborn  had  enjoyed  unprec- 
•  edented  academic  prosperity.  Opportunities  for  the 
study  of  education  were  unexcelled;  for,  connected 
with  the  college,  there  was  a  preparatory  department 
which  served  as  a  laboratory  for  the  study  of  peda- 
gogic problems,  in  which,  for  example,  the  lower  classes 
were  instructed  in  the  mother-tongue  —  a  procedure 
that  was  regarded  as  ultra-heterodox  at  this  time. 


BOYHOOD  AND  EARLY  LIFE   OF  COMENIUS     43 

Comenius  was  most  helped  by  the  instruction  of  the 
distinguished  theologian  and  philosopher,  Professor 
John  Henry  Alsted.  The  teachings  of  Alsted  were 
of  a  character  calculated  to  deepen  the  convictions  of 
the  young  student  from  Moravia,  for  the  Herborn  pro- 
fessor taught  among  other  things  —  as  is  indicated  by 
his  Encyclopaedia  of  the  sciences,  published  a  few  years 
later  —  the  following:  (1)  Not  more  than  one  thing 
should  be  taught  at  a  time;  (2)  not  more  than  one 
book  should  be  used  on  one  subject,  and  not  more  than 
one  subject  should  be  taught  on  one  day;  (3)  every- 
thing should  be  taught  through  the  medium  of  what  is 
more  familiar;  (4)  all  superfluity  should  be  avoided; 

(5)  all  study  should  be  mapped  out  in  fixed  periods ; 

(6)  all  rules  should  be  as  short  as  possible ;  (7)  every- 
thing should  be  taught  without  severity,  though  disci- 
pline must  be  maintained;  (8)  corporal  punishment 
should  be  reserved  for  moral  offences,  and  never  in- 
flicted for  lack  of  industry ;  (9)  authority  should  not 
be  allowed  to  prejudice  the  mind  against  the  facts 
gleaned  from  experience,  nor  should  custom  or  precon- 
ceived opinion  prevail ;  (10)  the  construction  of  a  new 
language  should  first  be  explained  in  the  vernacular ; 
(11)  no  language  should  be  taught  by  means  of  gram- 
mar; (12)  grammatical  terms  should  be  the  same  in  all 
languages.  "The  teacher,"  said  Alsted,  "should  be 
a  skilled  reader  of  character,  so  that  he  may  be  able 
to  classify  the  dispositions  of  his  pupils.  Unless  he 
pays  great  attention  to  differences  of  disposition,  he 
will  but  waste  all  the  efforts  he  expends  in  teaching." 

Another  professor  of  philosophy  at  Herborn  at  the 
time  was  Heinrich  Gutberleth,  who  was  likewise 
deeply  interested  in  pedagogy  and  whose  lectures 


44  COMENIUS 

seem  to  have  influenced  Comenius,  with  special  refer- 
ence to  his  advocacy  of  the  study  of  the  physical 
sciences.  In  theology  he  heard  lectures  by  Piscator, 
Hermannus,  and  Pasor.  Since  1530  the  schools  of 
Nassau  had  been  marked  by  great  improvement,  and 
this  improvement  was  in  no  small  measure  due  to  the 
intelligent  interest  of  the  professors  of  theology  at 
Herborn  in  the  schools  of  the  province.  Hermannus, 
with  whom  Comenius  studied  practical  theology,  was 
especially  active  in  school  reform. 

It  was  during  his  student  life  at  Herborn  that 
Comenius  became  acquainted  with  Ratke's  plan  of 
instruction,  then  much  discussed  at  university  centres, 
and  especially  at  Jena,  Giessen,  and  Herborn.  How- 
ever much  he  may  have  been  stimulated  to  educational 
reform  by  his  own  belated  classical  training  and  by 
the  pedagogic  character  of  the  work  at  Herborn,  the 
writings  of  Ratke,  as  he  himself  tells  us,  played  the 
largest  part  in  making  him  an  educational  reformer. 
While  at  Herborn  he  gave  special  attention  to  the 
Bohemian  language,  and  planned  a  dictionary  which 
was  never  published. 

Comenius  left  Herborn  in  the  spring  of  1613;  and 
after  a  few  weeks'  sojourn  at  Amsterdam  he  repaired 
to  Heidelberg,  where  he  matriculated  as  a  student  of 
philosophy  and  theology  on  the  13th  of  June.  Beyond 
the  fact  that  he  purchased  a  manuscript  of  Copernicus, 
and  that  at  the  end  of  a  year,  his  funds  becoming 
exhausted,  he  was  forced  to  make  the  return  journey 
to  Prague  on  foot,  nothing  is  known  of  his  life  at 
Heidelberg. 

Back  in  his  native  country  after  these  years  of  study 
and  travel  in  Germany,  he  was  still  too  young  by  two 


BOYHOOD  AND  EARLY  LIFE   OF   COMENIUS     45 

years  for  ordination  in  the  brotherhood.  Meanwhile 
he  turned  his  attention  to  education,  and  engaged  him- 
self as  a  teacher  in  the  elementary  school  at  Prerau 
conducted  by  the  Moravian  Brethren.  This  experi- 
ence brought  him  face  to  face  with  problems  of  method- 
ology and  discipline,  and  gave  him  an  opportunity  to 
apply  some  of  the  theories  he  had  formulated  while  a 
student  at  Herborn.  His  attention  was  at  once  called 
to  the  ineffective  methods  employed  in  teaching  Latin, 
for  the  remedy  of  which  he  prepared  an  easy  Latin 
book  for  beginners. 

His  ordination  took  place  at  Zerwick  on  the  29th 
day  of  April,  1616,  although  he  continued  teaching  at 
Prerau  for  two  years  longer,  when  he  was  called  to 
the  pastorate  of  the  flourishing  Moravian  church  at 
Fulneck.  At  the  same  time,  or  shortly  thereafter,  he 
was  elected  superintendent  of  the  schools  of  the  town.. 
In  this  twofold  capacity  he  ministered  to  the  spiritual 
and  educational  needs  of  Fulneck  for  three  years,  and 
passed  the  only  tranquil  and  happy  years  of  his  life. 
But  the  year  that  ushered  in  this  prosperous  career 
witnessed  the  outbreak  of  the  Thirty  Years'  War. 
/  In  1621  Fulneck  was  sacked  by  the  Spaniards,  and 
the  conquering  force  gave  itself  up  to  destruction  that 
baffles  description.  Houses  were  pillaged,  including 
the  residence  of  Comenius,  and  he  lost  all  his  prop- 
erty, including  his  library  and  the  manuscripts  of 
several  educational  treatises,  on  the  composition  of 
which  he  had  spent  years  of  labor.   | 

From  this  time  on,  the  Moravian  Brethren  were 
exposed  to  the  most  relentless  persecutions.  Many 
were  executed,  and  others  took  refuge  in  caves  in  the 
wilderness  or  on  the  secluded  estates  of  wealthy  sym- 


46  COMENIUS 

pathizers.  For  three  years  Comenius  found  an  asylum 
on  the  estate  of  Karl  von  Zerotin.  J  The  death  of  his 
wife  and  children  (for  he  had  married  while  at  Ful- 
neck)  added  to  the  afflictions  of  his  exile  ;  but  he 
sought  Relief  from  his  sorrow  in  literary  w,or]j:  —  the 
composition  of  a  metrical  translation  of  the  Psalms,  an 
allegorical  description  of  life,  and  the  construction  of 
a  highly  meritorious  map  of  Moravia. 

The  persecution  of  the  enemies  rendered  conceal- 
ment no  longer  possible;  and,  although  Karl  von 
Zerotin  was  held  in  high  regard  by  Ferdinand  II,  in 
1624  the  imperial  mandate  was  issued  which  banished 
the  evangelical  clergy  from  the  country.  For  a  time 
Comenius  and  several  of  his  brethren  secreted  them- 
selves from  their  merciless  pursuers  on  the  Bohemian 
mountains,  in  the  citadel  of  Baron  Sadowsky,  near 
Slaupna.  But  the  edict  of  1627  put  an  end  to  further  » 
protection  of  the  Moravian  clergy  by  the  nobles ;  and 
in  January,  1628,  Comenius  and  many  of  his  compa- 
triots, including  his  late  protector,  Baron  Sadowsky, 
set  out  for  Poland.  On  the  mountain  frontier  which 
separates  Moravia  from  Silesia,  one  gets  an  excellent 
view  of  Fulneck  and  the  surrounding  country.  Here 
the  band  of  exiles  knelt  and  Comenius  offered  up  an 
impassioned  prayer  for  his  beloved  Moravia  and  Bohe- 
mia. This  was  his  last  sad  look  on  his  devoted  coun- 
try. He  never  afterward  beheld  the  land  of  his 
fathers,  but  for  more  than  half  a  century  he  lived  an 
exile  in  foreign  regions.  Well  might  he,  in  his  old 
age,  exclaim :  "  My  whole  life  was  merely  the  visit  of 
a  guest;  I  had  no  fatherland." 


CHAPTER  IV 

CAKEER  AS  AN  EDUCATIONAL  REFORMER:    1628-1656 

Flight  to  Poland — Appointed  director  of  the  gymnasium  at  Lissa — 
Reforms  introduced— Literary  projects  — Need  of  a  patron  — 
Call  to  England  —  Friendship  with  Hartlib  —  Interest  of  the  Eng- 
lish Parliament  —  Discontent  with  existing  educational  institu- 
tions—  Lewis  de  Geer,  his  Dutch  patron  —  Call  to  Sweden  — 
Interview  with  Oxenstiern  —  Located  at  Elbing — Reform  of  the 
Swedish  schools  — Return  to  Poland  —  Consecration  as  senior 
bishop  —  Consequences  of  the  treaty  of  Westphalia  —  Ecclesiasti- 
cal ministrations —  Call  to  Hungary — Reform  of  the  schools  at 
Saros-Patak  —  Plan  of  a  pansophic  school  —  Return  to  Lissa  — 
The  city  burned  —  Flight  of  Comenius  from  Poland. 

After  the  flight  from  Bohemia,  Comenius  and  his 
compatriots  found  a  refuge  at  Lissa,  Poland,  with 
Count  Raphael,  a  powerful  prince  of  the  faith  of  the 
Moravian  Brethren,  to  whose  estate  hundreds  of  per- 
secuted Bohemians  had  already  fled.  Twelve  years 
were  passed  in  Lissa,  during  which  time  Comenius 
was  actively  engaged  in  educational  reform.  Besides 
the  composition  of  three  of  his  most  important  books 
—  the  Janua,  in  1631,  the  Great  didactic,  probably  in 
1632,  and  the  School  of  infancy,  in  1633  —  he  engaged 
actively  in  the  work  of  teaching.  A  secondary  school 
of  acknowledged  repute  had  been  maintained  in  Lissa 
by  the  Moravian  Brethren  since  1555,  and  here 
Comenius  found  the  opportunity  of  putting  into  prac- 
tice some  of  his  educational  theories.  It  is  apparent, 
however,  from  his  writings,  that  he  read  widely  before 

47 


48  COMENIUS 

undertaking  the  reorganization  of  the  gymnasium  at 
Lissa,  and  that  he  sought  aid  from  all  the  writers  on 
education,  both  ancient  and  modern.  His  corre- 
spondents at  this  period  included  such  distinguished 
names  as  Lubin,  Andreae,  Bitter,  Vogel,  Ratke,  Frey, 
Mencel,  Hartlib,  Evenius,  Johnstone,  and  Mochinger. 
To  these  distinguished  contemporaries  he  expresses 
his  dissatisfaction  with  current  educational  practices, 
and  seeks  guidance  in  the  reform  movement  he  has 
instituted  in  Poland. 

-  "  When  our  people  attend  school  for  the  sake  of  th& 
learned  languages,  what  do  they  bring  with  them  on 
returning  home?  "  he  asks.  "  What  beyond  that  which 
they  obtain  there  —  the  tinkling  of  human  "eloquence, 
the  love  of  disputation,  and  the  knowledge  that  puffeth 
up  instead  of  the  charity  that  buildeth  up.    Moreover, 

SOme    anqm'TP    r>rn'riipt  ™9Ta1fl;    ffnTnftj   a'dflgiTfl  *"  maVp. 

themselves  agreeable  by  a  show  of  external  civility; 
someT  habits  of  intemperance  and  a  distaste  or  hatred 
"of  t  firm  discipline.  And  yet  these  very  men  were 
trained  for  theTights  of  the  Church  and  the  pillars  of 
the  State.  0  that,  instead  of  such  an  education,  we 
had  retained  the  simplicity  of  childhood.  0  that  we 
might  bring  back  the  ancient  custom  of  the  Spartans, 
who,  more  than  all  the  other  Greeks,  were  intent  upon 
the  rational  education  of  their  youth." 

A  noteworthy  feature  of  his  work  as  a  reformer  at 
Lissa  consisted  in  a  careful  grading  of  the  schools,  and 
the  formulation  of  a  course  of  study  for  the  succes- 
:  sive  grades.  The  guiding  principle  in  this  schematic 
zation  of  school  work  was  that  each  grade  should  pave 
the  way  for  the  one  next  higher,  —  the  elements  of  all 
subjects  of  study  being  comparatively  simple,  these 


CAREER  AS  AN  EDUCATIONAL  REFORMER      49 

elements  should  be  gradually  introduced  and  elabo- 
rated from  grade  to  grade.  These  reforms  w«*^.-aiot 
only  fair-reaching,  they  wOT^  rtATT^n^innnm^^rn^^mj- 
made  possible  the  modern  graded  school. 

Civilized  Europe  did  not  long  remain  in  ignorance 
of  these  reforms.  They  were  discussed  with  approval 
in  England,  Germany,  France,  and  Sweden;  and  sev- 
eral foreign  governments  sought  his  services  in  the 
work  of  educational  reform.  Sweden,  in  1638,  ten- 
dered him  a  remunerative  position  and  unlimited 
opportunities  of  reforming  the  schools  of  the  kingdom 
along  the  lines  laid  down  in  his  writings.  He  replied 
that  he  was  willing  to  recommend  a  competent  person 
to  undertake  the  work,  but  that  he  was  not  in  position 
to  sever  his  relations  with  the  Moravian  Church  in 
Poland  and  to  leave  unfinished  some  important 
educational  writings. 

/^His  own  poverty,  as  well  as  that  of  his  brethren, 
made  him  realize  keenly  the  need  of  a  wealthy  patron 
to  aid  him  in  the  realization  of  his  educational  ideals^ 
"The  vastness  of  the  labors  I  contemplate,"  he  wrote, 
"demands  that  I  should  have  a  wealthy  patron, 
whether  we  look  at  their  extent,  or  at  the  necessity  of 
securing  assistants,  or  at  the  expense  generally.  I 
propose  to  render  the  study  of  science,  philosophy, 
\  and  theology  more  accessible  to  all  parties,  and  of 
greater  usefulness  in  the  regulation  of  human  affairs 
I  than  has  hitherto  been  the  case.  In  order  to  do  this, 
two  kinds  of  books  are  necessary  —  (1)  for  philosophi- 
cal research  and  (2)  for  elementary  training. 

"  Books  of  the  first  class  would  primarily  have  refer- 
ence to  the  Latin  language,  and  of  this  class  I  would 
adopt  eight :  — 


50  COMENIUS 

"1.  The  Vestibulum,  or  introduction  to  the  Latin 
tongue. 

"2.   The  Janua,  or  gate  of  the  Latin  tongue. 

"  3.    The  Palace,  or  essentials  of  the  Latin  language. 

"  4.  A  dictionary  giving  the  meaning  of  the  Latin 
words  in  the  mother-tongue. 

"  5.  A  dictionary  giving  all  the  words  of  the  native 
language  in  Latin,  and  more  especially  supplying 
phrases  of  the  former  language  with  corresponding 
phrases  in  the  latter. 

"  6.  A  Latin  dictionary  explaining  all  the  peculiar 
idioms  of  the  language. 

"7.  An  elementary  grammar  containing  all  the 
declensions  and  conjugations,  and  to  be  used  in 
connection  with  the  Vestibulum. 

"  8.  A  more  comprehensive  grammar,  to  be  used  in 
connection  with  the  Janua. 

y^"The  books  to  be  used  in  connection  with  element- 
ary training  are  three :  —  |_^. 

"1.  Pansophia,  or  universal  wisdom./jThis  book 
should  comprise  the  sum  total  of  human  wisdom,  and 
be  so  expressed  as  to  meet  the  requirements  of  both 
the  present  and  future  agesTJ  The  method  to  be  fol- 
lowed in  such  a  book  woulcTbe  to  reduce  it  to  certain 
fundamental  principles,  beyond  the  compass  of  which 
no  part  of  human  knowledge  can  reach.  Such  first 
principles  are  God,  the  world,  and  common  sense. 
f*z.  Panhistoria,  or  universal  history.  This  work 
must  comprehend  the  most  vital  facts  of  all  ages^ 
Universal  history  is  a  most  excellent  handmaid  ofiSie 
understanding,  searching  into  the  causes  of  all  things, 
and  inquiring  into  the  laws  of  cause  and  effect.  In- 
struction in  history  must  be  graded.     It  might  be  ar- 


CAREER  AS  AN  EDUCATIONAL  REFORMER     51 

ranged  in  six  classes  —  Bible  history,  natural  history, 
history  of  inventions,  history  of  morals,  history  of  the 
varies  religious  rites,  and  general  history. 
^^3.  General  dogmatics.  These  have  to  treat  of 
the  different  theories  taken  by  human  ingenuity,  the 
false  as  well  as  the  true,  thereby  preventing  a  relapse 
into  vain  speculations  and  dangerous  errors^ 

"  One  man  is  not  able  to  accomplish  an  -undertaking 
of  such  magnitude.  There  ought  to  be  some  clever 
linguists,  perhaps  three  well  versed  in  philosophy,  an 
able  historian,  and  a  man  thoroughly  acquainted  with 
Biblical  literature.  As  regards  the  philological  labors, 
I  have  already  met  with  an  excellent  assistant  in  Mr. 
Wechner.  Nor  are  clever  coadjutors  wanting  for  the 
Pansophia,  who  have  not  only  offered  the  treasures  of 
their  libraries,  but  who  have  offered  themselves  in 
their  cooperation  in  this  work.  Among  these  my 
friend  Hartlib  far  excels.  I  do  not  know  his  equal 
in  the  extent  of  his  knowledge,  his  acuteness  of  rea- 
soning, his  zeal  to  become  useful  to  the  welfare  of 
mankind,  his  fervent  love  for  a  philosophy  unmixed 
with  errors  and  fanciful  speculations,  and  his  self- 
denial  in  order  to  further  the  objects  in  view." 

Such  a  patron,  however,  was  not  at  once  forthcoming, 
although  it  would  appear  from  his  letters  that  Count 
Bohulslaw  of  Lissa,  whom  he  styles  "  the  chief  in  the 
kingdom  of  Poland,"  was  of  some  pecuniary  assistance 
to  him  at  this  time  in  the  development  of  his  theories. 

The  wide  publication  of  his  writings  aroused  a  keen 
interest  in  his  reforms,  and  especially  in  England. 
Samuel  Hartlib,  who  corresponded  extensively  with 
the  learned  men  of  Europe,  had  already  translated 
into  English  several  of  the  educational  writings  of 


62  COMENIUS 

Comenius,  and  in  various  other  ways  had  interested 
the  English  public  in  the  work  of  the  Moravian 
reformer. 

The  keen  personal  interest  of  Hartlib  in  the  work 
of  Comenius  had  important  temporary  consequences 
on  the  direction  of  the  reformer's  activities  during  the 
next  few  years.  Hartlib  at  this  time  was  the  most 
interesting  figure  in  English  educational  history. 
"Everybody  knew  him,"  says  Professor  Masson.1 
"He  was  a  foreigner  by  birth,  being  the  son  of  a 
Polish  merchant  who  had  left  Poland  when  the  coun- 
try fell  under  Jesuit  rule,  and  had  settled  in  Elbing 
in  Prussia,  in  very  good  circumstances.  Twice  mar- 
ried before  to  Polish  ladies,  this  merchant  had  married 
in  Prussia  for  his  third  wife  the  daughter  of  a  wealthy 
English  merchant  at  Dantzig;  and  thus  our  Hartlib, 
their  son,  though  Prussian  born  and  with  Polish  connec- 
tions, could  reckon  himself  half  English.  The  date 
of  his  birth  was  probably  about  the  beginning  of  the 
century.  He  appears  to  have  first  visited  England  in 
or  about  1628,  and  from  that  time,  though  he  made  fre- 
quent journeys  to  the  continent,  London  had  been  his 
headquarters.  Here,  with  a  residence  in  the  city,  he 
carried  on  business  as  a  merchant,  with  extensive 
foreign  correspondence,  and  very  respectable  family 
connections.  But  it  did  not  require  such  family  con- 
nections to  make  Hartlib  at  home  in  English  society. 
The  character  of  the  man  would  have  made  him  at 
home  anywhere.  He  was  one  of  those  persons  now 
styled  philanthropists,  or  friends  of  progress,  who 
take  an  interest  in  every  question  or  project  of  their 

i  The  life  of  John  Milton.  By  David  Masson.  Vol.  III.  Lon- 
don, 1873. 


UNIVERSIT 

CAREER  AS  AN  EDUCATIONAL  REFORMER  -  63 

time  promising  social  improvement,  have  always  some 
irons  in  the  fire,  are  constantly  forming  committees, 
or  writing  letters  to  persons  of  influence,  and  live 
altogether  for  the  public.  By  the  common  consent  of 
all  who  have  explored  the  intellectual  and  social  his- 
tory of  England  in  the  seventeenth  century,  he  is  one 
of  the  most  interesting  and  memorable  figures  of  that 
whole  period.  He  is  interesting  both  for  what  he  did 
himself  and  on  account  of  the  number  and  intimacy  of 
his  contacts  with  other  interesting  people." 

Through  Hartlib's  influence  the  English  Parliament 
invited  Comenius  to  England.  This  was  in  the  sum- 
mer of  1641.  Comenius  himself  may  be  permitted 
to  tell  how  all  this  came  about:  "After  my  Pansophia 
had  been  published  and  dispersed  through  the  various 
countries  of  Europe,  many  learned  men  approved  of 
the  object  and  plan  of  the  work,  but  despaired  of  its 
ever  being  accomplished  by  one  man  alone,  and  there- 
fore advised  that  a  college  of  learned  men  should  be 
instituted  to  carry  it  into  effect.  Mr.  Samuel  Hart- 
lib,  who  had  forwarded  its  publication  in  England, 
labored  earnestly  in  this  matter,  and  endeavored  by 
every  possible  means  to  bring  together  for  this  pur- 
pose a  number  of  intellectual  men.  And  at  length, 
having  found  one  or  two,  he  invited  me  with  many 
strong  entreaties.  As  my  friends  consented  to  my 
departure,  I  proceeded  to  London,  and  arrived  there 
on  the  autumnal  equinox  (September  the  22d)  in  the 
year  1641,  and  then  learned  that  I  had  been  called 
thither  by  an  order  of  the  Parliament.  But,  in  con- 
sequence of  the  king  having  gone  to  Scotland,  the  Par- 
liament had  been  dismissed  for  three  months,  and, 
consequently,  I  had  to  winter  in  London." 


64  COMENIUS 

His  friends  meanwhile  examined  with  more  detail 
his  educational  views  and  encouraged  him  to  elaborate 
his  views  in  a  tract,  which  he  named  Via  lucis,  or  the 
way  of  light.  This,  as  he  himself  says,  was  "a  na- 
tional disquisition  as  to  the  manner  in  which  wisdom 
—  the  intellectual  law  of  minds  —  may  at  length 
toward  the  evening  of  the  world  be  felicitously  dif- 
fused through  all  minds  in  all  nations." 

Around  Comenius  Hartlib  soon  collected  a  group  of 
thoughtful  men  interested  in  the  Moravian  reformers 
views ;  and  together  we  may  suppose  they  discussed 
at  length  the  larger  educational  problems  already 
formulated  by  Comenius  in  his  published  writings. 
The  group  included,  besides  Hartlib,  Mr.  John  Pell, 
a  mathematician  of  acknowledged  repute ;  John  Mil- 
ton, the  poet  and  educational  writer ;  Theodor  Haak, 
the  expositor  of  philosophic  systems ;  John  Wilkins, 
the  agricultural  enthusiast;  John  Durie,  the  advocate 
of  evangelical  unity;  Thomas  Farnaby,  the  school- 
master at  Sevenoaks  and  one  of  the  English  editors 
of  Comenius '  Janua;  and  probably  the  American 
Winthrop,  later  governor  of  Connecticut,  who  was 
wintering  in  London.  He  was  delighted  with  London 
and  the  people  he  met.  Writing  to  friends  in  Lissa, 
he  says:  "I  live  as  a  friend  among  friends;  though 
not  so  many  visit  me  as  would  if  they  knew  that  I 
could  speak  English,  or  if  they  had  more  confidence 
in  their  own  Latin." 

When  Parliament  finally  convened  "  and  my  pres- 
ence being  known,"  writes  Comenius,  "I  was  com- 
manded to  wait  until  after  some  important  business 
having  been  transacted,  a  commission  should  be  issued 
to  certain  wise  and  learned  Englishmen  to  hear  me 


CAREER  AS  AN  EDUCATIONAL  REFORMER     55 

and  be  informed  of  my  plan.  As  an  earnest,  moreover, 
of  their  intentions,  they  communicated  to  me  their 
purpose  to  assign  to  us  a  college  with  revenues, 
whence  some  men  of  learning  and  industry  selected 
from  any  nation  might  be  honorably  sustained  either 
for  a  certain  number  of  years  or  in  perpetuity.  The 
Savoy  in  London,  and  beyond  London,  Winchester, 
and  again  near  the  city,  Chelsea,  were  severally  men- 
tioned, and  inventories  of  the  latter  and  its  revenues 
were  communicated  to  me;  so  that  nothing  seemed 
more  certain  than  that  the  designs  of  Lord  Bacon  to 
open  a  universal  college  of  all  nations,  devoted  solely 
to  the  advancement  of  the  sciences,  were  now  in  way 
of  being  carried  into  effect." 

Comenius  had  assumed  that  when  the  call  to  Eng- 
land came  to  him  at  Lissa,  it  simply  represented  a 
private  movement  backed  by  Hartlib  and  other  influ- 
ential Englishmen;  and  he  expresses  himself  in  terms 
of  delighted  surprise  upon  arriving  in  London  to  find 
that  he  had  been  summoned  thither  by  the  Parliament 
of  the  realm.  The  parliamentary  sanction  of  this 
summons  has  never  been  corroborated.  Professor 
Masson  made  the  attempt,  but  was  unable  to  find  in 
the  Lords'  or  Cpmmons,  Journal  for  the  years  1641 
and  1642  any  traces  of  communication  between 
Comenius  and  the  Parliament  of  which  he  speaks. 
He  admits  that  there  may  be  such  corroborative  evi- 
dence, since  the  indexes  for  these  years  are  incom- 
plete. There  are,  however,  no  good  and  sufficient 
reasons  for  doubting  the  word  of  Comenius  in  this 
matter. 

There  are  traces  at  this  period  of  parliamentary  dis- 
satisfaction with  current  English  education,  and  more 


56  COMENIUS 

particularly  with  university  education  in  England. 
Professor  Masson  thus  states  the  matter :  "  There  had 
for  some  time  been  a  tradition  of  dissatisfaction  with 
the  existing  state  of  the  universities  and  the  great 
public  schools.  In  especial,  Bacon's  complaints  and 
suggestions  in  the  second  book  of  his  De  Augmentis 
had  sunk  into  thoughtful  minds.  That  the  universities, 
by  persistence  in  old  and  outworn  methods,  were  not 
in  full  accord  with  the  demands  and  needs  of  the  age ; 
that  their  aims  were  too  professional  and  particular, 
and  not  sufficiently  scientific  and  general;  that  the 
order  of  studies  in  them  was  bad,  and  some  of  the 
studies  barren ;  that  there  ought  to  be  a  bold  direction 
of  their  endowments  and  apparatus  in  the  line  of 
experimental  knowledge,  so  as  to  extract  from  nature 
new  secrets  and  sciences  for  which  humanity  was 
panting;  that,  moreover,  there  ought  to  be  more  fra- 
ternity and  correspondence  among  the  universities  of 
Europe  and  some  organization  of  their  labors,  with  a 
view  to  mutual  illumination  and  collective  advance- 
ment :  —  all  these  Verulamian  speculations,  first  sub- 
mitted to  King  James,  were  lying  here  and  there  in 
English  intellects  in  watch  for  an  opportunity." 

But  the  time  was  not  yet  come  for  the  reform  move- 
ment in  English  education.  Ireland  was  in  a  state  of 
commotion;  two  hundred  thousand  Englishmen  had 
been  massacred ; 1  the  sudden  departure  of  the  king 
from  London  on  the  10th  of  January,  1642,  and  the 
prospect  of  a  prolonged  civil  war  convinced  Comenius 
that  it  would  be  useless  to  tarry  longer  in  England. 
He  informed  his  friends  of  his  disappointment  of  his 
plans.  Hartlib  was  hopeful  and  urged  delay,  but  a 
1  Professor  Masson. 


CAREER  AS  AN  EDUCATIONAL   REFORMER     57 

call  to  Sweden,  made  four  years  previous,  was  renewed 
at  this  time,  and  he  left  London  on  the  10th  of  June, 
in  the  year  1642. 

Lewis  de  Geer,  a  rich  Dutch  merchant  and  phi- 
lanthropist, residing  at  Nordkoping,  Sweden,  had 
offered  to  render  him  financial  aid  in  working  out  his 
educational  reforms  in  Sweden.  But  de  Geer's 
notions  of  reform  differed  widely  from  those  of  the 
English  friends.  He  was  less  interested  in  universal 
research,  the  founding  of  pansophic  colleges,  and  the 
results  of  original  investigation  than  Hartlib  and  the 
Englishmen.  What  he  wanted  was  better  school- 
books  for  the  children,  rational  methods  of  teaching 
for  the  teachers,  and  some  intelligent  grading  of  the 
schools.  The  English  friends  were  satisfied  with  the 
broad  generalities  of  pansophic  learning,  the  unreal- 
ized dreams  that  were  so  very  near  the  reformer's 
heart;  the  Dutch  merchant  would  be  satisfied  with 
nothing  less  than  concrete  applications  of  theories. 
There  is  no  doubt  that  Comenius  would  have  preferred 
lingering  in  England  or  going  to  some  place  where  his 
cherished  pansophic  schemes  might  be  given  a  hear- 
ing. But  he  was  human  and  had  organic  needs,  and 
he  knew  that  the  liberal  remuneration  offered  him  by 
de  Geer  would  avert  poverty  even  though  the  realiza- 
'tion  of  his  pure  and  exalted  pansophic  dream  was 
deferred. 

"In  the  history  of  great  renunciations,"  says  Mr. 
Keatinge,1  "surely  none  is  stranger  than  this.  We 
have  a  man  little  past  the  prime  of  life,  his  brain 

1  The  Great  didactic  of  John  Amos  Comenius.  With  introduc- 
tions, biographical  and  historical.  By  M.  W.  Keatinge.  London, 
1896.    pp.468. 


68  COMENIUS 

teeming  with  magnificent,  if  somewhat  visionary, 
plans  for  social  reform,  a  mighty  power  in  the  com- 
munity that  shared  his  religious  ideas,  and  an  object 
of  interest  even  to  those  who  may  have  shrugged  their 
shoulders  at  his  occasional  want  of  balance.  Suddenly 
he  flings  his  projects  to  the  winds,  consigns  his  darling 
plans  to  the  dustheap  of  unrealizable  ideas,  and 
retires  to  a  small  seaside  town  —  not  to  meditate,  not 
to  give  definite  form  to  latent  conceptions  or  to  evolve 
new  ones,  not  to  make  preparation  for  the  dazzling 
of  intellectual  Europe  with  an  octavo  of  fantastic 
philanthropy  or  of  philosophic  mysticism,  but  —  to 
write  school-books  for  the  little  boys  in  Swedish 
schools." 

Comenius  went  from  London  to  Nordkoping,  where 
he  spent  some  days  in  conference  with  his  new  patron, 
Lewis  de  Geer.  He  was  not  to  receive  a  stipulated 
salary,  but  to  be  paid  certain  sums  upon  the  comple- 
tion of  definite  texts,  the  number  and  character  of  the 
same  to  be  determined  by  the  educational  authorities 
at  Stockholm,  whither  de  Geer  directed  Comenius  to- 
go  for  further  orders.  In  Stockholm  he  met  with 
Lord  Axel  Oxenstiern,  grand  chancellor  of  the  king- 
dom of  Sweden,  and  Dr.  John  Skyte,  professor  of 
canon  and  civil  law  (as  well  as  chancellor)  in  the  Uni- 
versity of  Upsala.  Of  this  conference  Comenius  says : 
"  These  two  exercised  me  in  debate  for  four  days,  and 
chiefly  Oxenstiern,  that  eagle  of  the  north.  He 
inquired  into  the  foundations  of  both  my  schemes,  the 
didactic  and  the  pansophic,  so  searchingly  that  it  was 
unlike  anything  that  had  been  done  before  by  any  of 
my  learned  critics.  In  the  first  two  days  he  examined 
the  didactics,  with,  at  length,  this  conclusion:  'From 


CAREER  AS  AN  EDUCATIONAL  REFORMER      59 

an  early  age/  said  he,  'I  perceived  that  our  method 
of  studies  generally  in  use  is  a  harsh  and  crude  one, 
but  where  the  root  of  the  trouble  was  I  couldn't  find 
out.  At  length  having  been  sent  by  my  king  [Gus- 
tavus  Adolphus],  of  glorious  memory,  as  ambassador 
into  Germany,  I  conversed  on  the  subject  with  various 
learned  men.  And  when  I  heard  that  Wolfgang  Batke 
was  toiling  at  a  reformed  method,  I  had  no  rest  of  mind 
until  I  had  got  that  gentleman  into  my  presence ;  but, 
instead  of  a  talk  on  the  subject,  he  offered  me  a  big 
volume  in  quarto  to  read.  I  swallowed  that  trouble; 
and,  having  gone  through  the  book,  I  noted  that  he 
detected  not  badly  the  maladies  of  the  schools;  but 
the  remedies  he  proposed  did  not  seem  to  me  sufficient. 
Yours,  Mr.  Comenius,  rest  on  firmer  foundations. ' ,M 
The  consultation  with  Oxenstiern  and  Skyte  con- 
tinued four  days,  at  the  conclusion  of  which  they  ren- 
dered their  decision  on  his  various  theories.  With 
reference  to  his  pansophic  notions,  they  saw  little  of 
immediate  utility  to  the  welfare  of  mankind.  But  his 
didactics  they  regarded  with  favor.  They  urged  him 
to  give  his  attention  to  the  reformation  of  teaching 
and  the  preparation  of  suitable  text-books.  While 
somewhat  chagrined  at  this  unsympathetic  attitude 
toward  his  pansophic  theories,  and  a  little  surprised 
to  learn  that  de  Geer  should  be  of  the  same  mind,  he 
was  forced  to  acquiesce,  not,  however,  without  the  ear- 
nest solicitations  of  Hartlib  and  his  English  friends 
not  to  forsake  the  cherished  pansophic  principles.2 

1  Mittheilungen  iiber  Wolfgang  Ratichius.  Von  Agathon 
Niemeyer.    Halle,  1840. 

2  In  a  letter  to  Governor  Winthrop  of  Connecticut,  Hartlib  la- 
ments that  Comenius  should  continually  allow  himself  to  be  diverted 
from  his  pansophic  works. 


V 


60  COMENIUS 

The  town  of  Elbing,  on  the  Baltic  Sea,  in  West 
Prussia,  was  designated  by  de  Geer  as  a  suitable 
residence  for  Comenius  during  the  time  that  he  should 
be  in  the  service  of  the  Swedish  educational  depart- 
ment. Here  he  settled,  with  his  family  and  the 
assistants  de  Geer  had  permitted  him  to  employ  at 
the  patron's  expense,  in  October,  1642.  The  chief 
task  imposed  upon  him  was  the  compilation  of  a 
series  of  text-books  for  use  in  elementary  and  sec- 
ondary schools.  But  progress  was  slow;  the  Swedes 
became  impatient,  and  de  Geer  grew  restive.  In  con- 
sequence, the  relations  with  his  patron  soon  became 
strained,  and  continued  so  during  most  of  the  Elbing 
period.  In  reply  to  a  complaint  from  de  Geer, 
Comenius  wrote  him  in  September,  1643:  "I  compose 
books  and  do  not  merely  copy  those,  of  others.  Our 
proposed  work  is  not  merely  a  book,  but  a  real  treas- 
ure for  the  aiding  of  whose  production  my  patron  will 
assuredly  have  no  cause  for  regret."  He  admits  that 
he  has  been  diverted  from  the  completion  of  a  work  on 
language  teaching  by  a  philosophic  treatise  which  he 
considers  of  far  greater  importance  than  the  details 
of  methodology. 

In  addition  to  the  philosophic  studies,  in  which  de 
Geer  and  the  Swedes  had  little  or  no  interest,  Come- 
nius dissipated  his  energies  in  other  ways.  When 
it  became  generally  known  that  he  had  located  in 
Elbing,  the  wealthy  patrons  of  the  local  high  school 
petitioned  the  town  council  to  secure  him  to  give 
weekly  lectures  to  the  pupils.  In  other  ways  he  iden- 
tified himself  with  local  interests,  which  diverted  his 
time  from  his  assigned  tasks.  Moreover,  his  connec- 
tion with  the  Moravian  Brethren  compelled  him  to 


CAREER  AS  AN  EDUCATIONAL  REFORMER     61 

make  frequent  trips  to  Poland  to  attend  ecclesiastical 
conventions  and  minister  to  the  needs  of  the  scattered 
brethren.  De  Geer's  patience  must  have  been  sorely 
tried,  for  he  sent  to  Elbing,  with  annoying  frequency, 
to  inquire  concerning  the  progress  of  the  work.  In 
reply,  Comenius  begged  his  patron  have  patience ;  he 
explained  the  difficult  nature  of  his  labors,  and  assured 
him  that  he  was  making  as  much  progress  as  was  con- 
sistent with  the  nature  of  his  undertaking. 

Toward  the  close  of  1646  he  went  to  Sweden  and 
made  a  personal  report  to  his  patron,  covering  the  four 
years  of  his  employment.  A  government  committee 
was  appointed  to  review  his  work;  its  report  was  most 
favorable  to  Comenius;  and  he  was  urged  to  get  the 
work  in  shape  for  immediate  publication.  He  had 
prepared  during  this  time,  in  spite  of  distractions,  a 
work  on  language  teaching,  which  treated  of  its  nature, 
function,  and  the  laws  to  be  observed  in  language 
teaching;  a  lexicon  based  on  these  laws;  and  a  series 
of  graded  reading  books. 

At  the  death  of  Justinus,  the  senior  bishop  of  the 
Moravian  Brethren  in  1648,  Comenius  was  elected  his 
successor.  His  new  duties  made  his  removal  to  Lissa 
necessary,  and  he  took  with  him  the  unfinished 
treatises  for  the  Swedes,  and  sent  them  to  de  Geer  as 
rapidly  as  he  was  able  to  complete  them.  It  caused 
him  no  pang  of  sorrow  to  sever  his  connection  with 
the  Dutch  merchant  and  the  Swedes.  For  he  was 
isolated  at  Elbing;  his  labors  were  uncongenial,  and 
the  remuneration  which  he  received  was  small.  It  is 
apparent  from  his  letters,  subsequently  written,  that 
it  was  not  merely  the  Dutchman's  gold  that  held  him 
to  tasks  so  arduous  and  uncongenial.     He  hoped  by 


62  COMENIUS 

this  connection  to  secure  the  moral  support  of  the 
Swedes  in  removing  from  the  Moravian  Brethren  the 
ban  which  exiled  them  from  their  beloved  fatherland. 

The  treaty  of  Westphalia,  however,  shattered  this 
hope.  There  was  not  a  single  stipulation  in  favor 
of  the  exiled  brethren.  The  promises  Sweden  had 
made  to  Comenius  in  this  matter  were  disregarded. 
In  vain  he  implored  Oxenstiern  not  to  forsake  his 
people.  "  My  people  have  aided  your  arms  with  their 
weapons,  the  unceasing  offerings  of  their  tears  and 
supplications  to  God;  and  now,  when  they  see  your 
success  and  may  rejoice  in  the  hope  for  a  more  favor- 
able issue  of  affairs,  they  are  troubled  with  dread 
apprehension  lest  they  should  be  forsaken."  Later  he 
wrote  him:  "Of  what  use  is  it  to  us,  who  are  now  de- 
prived of  every  hope  of  peace, to  have  assisted  you  with 
our  tears  in  obtaining  victory ;  when,  although  it  lay 
within  your  power  to  release  us  from  our  prison-house, 
you  surrender  us  anew  into  the  hands  of  our  oppress- 
ors? Of  what  avail  now  all  those  holy  evangelical 
alliances  formed  by  our  ancestors,  and  consecrated 
with  their  sacred  martyr-blood?"  l  But  these  impor- 
tunities were  of  no  avail;  for,  while  equal  privileges 
were  granted  to  the  Reformed,  Lutheran,  and  Catholic 
churches  in  Germany,  in  Bohemia,  and  Moravia,  the 
ritual  of  the  latter  alone  was  established.  It  was  a 
severe  blow  to  Comenius,  as  well  as  to  the  whole 
brotherhood  of  the  Moravian  Church. 

The  years  1648  to  1650  were  passed  in  ministrations 
to  the  dispersed  brethren ; 2  he  was  especially  conscien- 

1  The  correspondence  between  Comenius  and  Oxenstiern  over 
the  treaty  of  Westphalia  is  given  by  Gindely,  Uber  des  Comenius 
Leben  und  Wirksamkeit  in  der  Fremde.    Vienna,  1855. 

2  For  a  full  account  of  these  labors  see  Gindely's  Geschichte  der 
Bohmischen  Briider.    Prague,  1857-8. 


CAREER  AS  AN  EDUCATIONAL   REFORMER     63 

tious  in  the  discharge  of  the  duties  of  his  episcopal 
office ;  he  established  more  intimate  relations  between 
the  Polish  and  Hungarian  branches  of  the  Moravian 
churches  5  he  sought  and  secured  important  financial 
aid  for  the  brotherhood  in  England,  Holland,  and 
Sweden;  he  secured  positions  as  teachers  for  many  of 
his  exiled  countrymen;  and  induced  the  University 
of  Oxford  to  create  stipends  for  Bohemian  students. 
Gindely  remarks  that  at  this  period  there  were  few 
European  countries  in  which  the  proteges-  of  Comenius 
could  not  be  found  in  the  capacity  of  private  tutors, 
public  school-teachers,  artists,  or  clergymen. 

The  impoverished  condition  of  the  Moravian  Church 
caused  Comenius  no  little  concern,  and  induced  him  to 
look  with  some  favor  on  the  numerous  calls  to  impor- 
tant educational  posts  which  came  to  him  from  foreign 
countries.  That  from  the  widow  of  Prince  Eakoczy 
and  her  son  Sigismund  was  especially  tempting.  They 
wanted  him  to  come  to  Transylvania,  Hungary,  and 
reform  the  school  system.  A  liberal  salary  was  offered, 
together  with  complete  facilities  for  the  organization 
of  a  school  system  in  accordance  with  his  own  views 
—  including  a  printing  establishment  for  the  publica- 
tion of  required  books.  It  was  further  stipulated  that 
he  might  bring  with  him  ten  or  a  dozen  Bohemian 
youths  to  be  educated  at  the  expense  of  the  prince  and 
his  mother.  The  scattered  members  of  the  Moravian 
Church  in  Hungary,  in  the  belief  that  the  presence  of 
the  bishop  in  that  country  would  unify  the  interests 
of  the  brotherhood,  also  urged  him  to  accept  the  Tran- 
sylvanian  call,  at  the  same  time  petitioning  the  gen- 
eral synod  to  relieve  Comenius  of  his  clerical  functions 
at  Lissa  for  a  few  years. 


/, 


64  COMENIUS" 

The  Church  granted  the  petition,  and  Comenius 
settled  in  Saros-Patak,  in  May,  1650.  He  at  once 
drew  up  a  sketch  of  a  seven-grade  school,  which  he 
published  a  year  later  under  the  title  Plan  of  a  pan- 
sophic  school.  "In  scope  and  breadth  of  view," 
remarks  a  modern  historian,  "  the  scheme  was  centu- 
ries in  advance  of  its  time,  while  many  of  the  sugges- 
tions which  it  contained  are  but  imperfectly  carried 
into  effect  at  the  present  day." 

The  Plan  is  a  detailed  course  of  study  with  specific 
directions  for  the  application  of  the  course  for  the  use 
of  teachers.     In  these  directions  he  explains  the  great  - . 
danger  of  overworking  the  children ;  and  to  avoid  this, 

a  rest-pause  ot   a  naii-nour  is  provided  ajtex-  -eaeh 

hour's  instruction  for  free,  spontaneous  play.  After 
each  meal  a  full  hour's  rest  is  granted.  The  pupils 
are  to  have  eight  hours  of  sleep;  they  are  granted  a 
half -holiday  on  Sundays  and  Wednesdays,  with  fort- 
night vacations  at  Christmas,  Easter,  and  Whitsun- 
tide, and  a  month's  vacation  in  the  summer.  This 
gave  a  school  year  of  forty-two  weeks,  with  thirty 
hours  for  school  work  in  each  week.  The  forenoon 
instruction  was  as  follows:  From  6  to  7  o'clock, 
religious  instruction,  including  hymns,  prayers,  and 
Bible  readings.  From  7.30  to  8.30,  theoretical  expo- 
sition of  the  new  subject-matter  of  the  day's  lesson; 
and  from  9  to  10,  a  practical  treatment  and  review  of 
the  same.  There  was  music  (and  mathematics)  in 
the  afternoon  from  1  to  2;  history  from  2.30  to  3.30; 
and  composition,  with  exercises  in  style,  from  4  to  5. 

The  Plan  requires  that  the  seven  grades  of  the 
school  meet  in  separate  rooms,  and  that  a  teacher  be 
provided  for  each  grade.    In  each  class,  the  text-books 


CAREER  AS  AN  EDUCATIONAL   REFORMER     66 

must  be  adapted  to  the  capacities  of  the  children.  The 
Vestibulum  is  the  lowest  class.  Over  the  door  of  this 
room  is  the  motto,  "Let  no  one  enter  who  cannot 
read."  The  room  is  so  decorated  that  the  pictures 
illustrate  the  subjects  taught  in  this  grade;  and,  by 
means  of  these  illustrations,  the  senses  are  trained. 
The  pupils  are  taught  short  maxims  containing  the 
most  important  rules  of  conduct,  a  few  common  Latin 
words,  the  elements  of  arithmetic,  the  scales  in  music, 
and  some  short  hymns  and  prayers.  Writing  and 
drawing  are  also  taught,  and  special  attention  is  given 
to  the  games  of  the  children. 

The  Janual  is  the  second  class.  The  motto  over 
the  class-room  door  of  this  grade  is,  "  Let  no  one  enter 
who  is  ignorant  of  mathematics."  Provided  the  more 
common  objects  mentioned  in  the  Janua  cannot  be 
readily  obtained,  pictures  of  these  objects  are  hung  on 
the  wall.  The  text-books  used  are,  besides  the  Janua, 
the  Latin  vernacular  dictionary  and  the  Janual  gram- 
mar. In  composition,  the  pupils  are  exercised  in  the 
structure  of  phrases,  sentences,  and  periods;  in  reli- 
gion, they  learn  the  catechism ;  in  mathematics,  addi- 
tion and  subtraction  and  plane  figures  in  geometry. 
There  are  more  advanced  exercises  in  music;  and,  as 
in  the  preceding  grade,  the  teachers  are  urged  to 
encourage  the  plays  and  games  of  the  children. 

The  Atrial  is  the  third  class.  Its  motto  is,  "  Let  no 
one  enter  who  cannot  speak."  Here  Bible  readings, 
in  abridged  form  and  suited  to  the  intelligence  of  the 
children,  are  begun.  The  text-book  is  the  Atrium, 
together  with  a  grammar  of  eloquence  and  a  Latin- 
Latin  dictionary.  In  arithmetic,  the  pupils  master 
multiplication  and  division,  and  in  geometry,  solid 


66  COMENIUS 

figures.  The  musical  instruction  includes  harmony 
and  the  rudiments  of  Latin  verse.  Famous  deeds  in 
Biblical  narrative  furnish  the  basis  of  the  historic 
instruction.  In  composition  there  are  exercises  in 
style,  consisting  of  paraphrasing  and  the  transposition 
of  sentences.  Before  the  pupils  are  permitted  to  pass 
from  this  grade  they  must  be  able  to  read  the  Latin 
authors  readily  and  to  converse  in  the  Latin  fluently. 

The  Philosophical  is  the  fourth  class,  with  the 
motto,  "Let  no  one  who  is  ignorant  of  history  enter 
here."  The  walls  are  decorated  with  pictures  illus- 
trative of  arithmetic,  geometry,  and  physics,  and  con- 
nected with  this  class-room  are  a  chemical  laboratory 
and  a  dissecting-room.  The  religious  instruction 
includes  hymns,  Psalms,  an  epitome  of  the  New  Tes- 
tament, and  a  life  of  Christ.  The  text-book  is  called 
the  Palace  of  wisdom;  in  it  the  genesis  of  natural  phe- 
nomena are  described.  In  mathematics,  the  pupils 
learn  the  rules  of  proportion;  they  begin  the  study  of 
trigonometry;  also  statics,  and  instruction  on  musical 
instruments.  Greek  is  begun,  and  the  pupils  study 
natural  history  through  Pliny  and  ^Elian.  Comenius 
mentions  that  he  does  not  consider  Greek  a  difficult 
study;  and  he  thinks  it  need  cause  the  pupils  no 
alarm,  since  an  exhaustive  knowledge  of  Greek  is  not 
required,  and  the  difficulties  of  the  study  will  be 
largely  overcome  by  the  use  of  rational  methods  of 
teaching.  * 

The  fifth  class  is  the  Logical.  Over  the  door  is  the 
inscription,  "Let  no  one  enter  who  is  ignorant  of 
natural  philosophy,"  and  the  walls  are  covered  with 
the  rules  of  logic.  The  pupils  have  a  Bible  manual 
and  a  class-book  on  problems  in  philosophy.     The 


CAREER  AS  AN  EDUCATIONAL  REFORMER     67 

problems  include  a  survey  of  things  that  have  been 
and  may  be  discovered  by  man ;  a  formal  logic  explain- 
ing the  processes  of  reasoning,  and  a  repertory  of  such 
philosophical  problems  as  present  themselves  to  the 
human  mind.  In  arithmetic,  the  rules  of  partnership 
and  allegation  are  studied;  in  geometry,  mensuration 
of  heights  and  distances  and  plane  surfaces;  in  geog- 
raphy, a  description  of  the  earth;  in  astronomy,  an 
account  of  the  heavens;  in  history,  a  survey  of 
mechanical  inventions.  For  the  formation  of  a  liter- 
ary style,  such  historians  as  Curtius,  Caesar,  and  Jus- 
tin are  read.  The  study  of  Greek  is  continued,  and 
Isocrates  and  Plutarch  are  recommended  for  reading. 
Dramatic  performances  are  introduced  in  the  fifth 
class.  Grammar,  logic,  and  metaphysics  are  repre- 
sented in  conflict,  but  a  reconciliation  is  finally  effected 
through  study. 

The  sixth  is  the  Political  class.  Its  motto,  "Let 
no  one  enter  who  cannot  reason."  Sallust,  Cicero, 
Virgil,  and  Horace  are  read  for  style ;  provision  is 
made  for  verse  writing;  attention  is  given  to  geog- 
raphy and  the  parts  of  astronomy  dealing  with  the 
planets  and  the  laws  of  the  eclipses;  the  Bible  is  read 
through ;  more  advanced  topics  in  arithmetic  and  geom- 
etry are  taken  up ;  the  special  class-book  studied  deals 
with  human  society  and  the  laws  of  economics;  in 
Greek  the  pupils  read  from  Thucydides  and  Hesiod. 
Dramatic  performances  are  continued,  the  degeneration 
and  moral  downfall  of  Solomon  being  rendered. 

The  seventh  and  last  grade  of  the  course  is  the 
Philosophic.  Its  motto  is,  "Let  no  one  enter  who 
is  irreligious."  The  instruction  is  of  an  essentially 
theological  character.      On  the  walls   are   inscribed 


68  COMENIUS 

numerous  mystic  symbols  illustrative  of  the  hidden 
wisdom  of  the  Holy  Scriptures.  The  most  devotional 
Psalms  and  church  hymns  are  used  in  the  school  exer- 
cises. There  are  readings  from  the  Scriptures,  the 
works  of  the  most  inspired  theologians  and  martyrs, 
and  a  resum&  of  Christian  beliefs,  duties,  and  aspira- 
tions, all  written  in  the  phraseology  of  the  Bible. 
The  text-book  of  the  grade  is  ultra-religious  in  char- 
acter. It  includes  (1)  an  account  of  the  earthly  and 
heavenly  revelations  of  God;  (2)  a  commentary  for 
Scriptural  reading;  and  (3)  a  detailed  account  of  the 
mysteries  of  salvation.  In  arithmetic,  the  sacred  and 
mystic  numbers  that  occur  in  the  Scriptures ;  in  archi- 
tecture, the  sacred  structures  as  exemplified  by  Noah's 
ark,  the  tabernacle,  and  the  Temple;  in  history,  the 
general  history  of  the  Church ;  and  in  ancient  language, 
Hebrew  takes  the  place  of  Greek  —  this,  that  the  stu- 
dents may  be  able  to  read  and  understand  the  Scriptures 
in  the  original  text.  Oratory  is  studied  that  those 
who  become  preachers  may  know  how  to  address  a 
congregation,  and  that  those  who  engage  in  politics 
may  know  how  to  reason  with  their  hearers. 

Such  is  a  condensed  survey  of  the  course  of  study 
which  Comenius  devised  for  the  schools  at  Saros'- 
Patak;  and  in  no  small  degree  his  reputation  as  a 
reformer  rests  upon  this  piece  of  work.  For  the 
Saros-Patak  Plan  became  a  model  for  educators  in 
many  lands,  and  the  progenitor  of  a  long  line  of  graded 
schemes  of  instruction  which  constitute  such  an  essen- 
tial feature  of  the  educational  economy  of  to-day.  Not 
only  were  subjects  of  study  graded  in  accordance  with 
the  laws  of  the  development  of  child-mind,  but  text- 
books were  graded  as  well.     Moreover,  the  scheme 


CAREER  AS  AN  EDUCATIONAL  REFORMER     69 

made  necessary  the  employment  of  teachers  who  com- 
prehended the  character  of  the  work,  and,  more  par- 
ticularly, those  with  some  appreciation  of  the  natural 
history  of  the  child  and  the  causes  which  condition  its 
growth.  Little  as  Comenius  understood  psychology, 
at  least  in  the  modern  use  of  that  term,  he  was  alive 
to  the  fact  that  in  childhood  the  senses  are  keenest, 
and  that  the  line  of  least  resistance  in  the  acquisition 
of  new  impressions  is  through  (1)  objects,  (2)  pictures, 
and  (3)  interesting  verbal  descriptions  in  the  mother- 
tongue. 

His  labors  at  Saros-Patak  terminated  at  the  close  of 
the  fourth  year,  during  which  time  the  first  three 
grades  of  the  Plan  were  organized.  All  contemporary 
evidence  confirms  the  success  of  the  scheme.  Although 
so  marked  a  departure  from  traditional  educational 
practices,  it  succeeded  to  a  degree  that  must  have 
been  surprising  even  to  Comenius  himself.  The  fact 
that  the  teachers  in  the  schools  were  trained  under 
Comenius  at  Lissa  did  much,  doubtless,  to  remove 
otherwise  possible  frictions. 

But  careful  gradation  was  not  the  only  marked 
reform  carried  out  at  Saros-Patak  during  this  period. 
Pictures  were  introduced  as  aids  in  teaching,  and  the 
first  child's  picture  book,  the  first  of  a  long  line  of 
books  so  popular  in  our  own  day,  was  written.  This 
was  the  famous  Orbis  pictus,  jto  be  discussed  in  a 
subsequent  chapter.  I 

Comenius  returned  to  Lissa  in  1654,  to  resume  his 
ecclesiastical  labors.  But  his  sojourn  was  brief;  for, 
with  the  invasion  of  Poland  by  the  Swedes,  came  the 
fall  and  conflagration  of  the  city.  Comenius  escaped, 
"almost  in  a  state  of  nudity/'  to  use  his  own  words. 


70  COMENIUS 

He  had  not  only  lost  his  property  and  his  library  in 
the  conflagration,  but  he  had  sustained  a  yet  greater 
loss  in  the  burning  of  his  numerous  manuscripts,  and, 
more  important  (to  him)  than  all  the  others,  his  entire 
pansophic  work,  on  the  composition  of  which  he  had 
labored  so  arduously  for  many  years.  Writing  to 
Montanus,  he  says,  "The  loss  of  this  work  I  shall 
cease  to  lament  only  when  I  cease  to  breathe."  He 
escaped  from  Lissa  to  Silesia,  where  he  found  refuge 
for  a  time  in  the  home  of  a  nobleman.  He  shortly 
afterward  pushed  on  to  Frankfort,  but  not  feeling 
secure  here  he  moved  to  Hamburg,  where  for  two 
months  he  was  prostrated  by  a  severe  illness. 


CHAPTER  V 

CLOSING  YEARS:    1656-1670 

Flight  to  Amsterdam  —  Reception  by  Lawrence  de  Geer — Religious 
freedom  in  Holland  —  Publication  of  the  complete  edition  of  his 
writings — Other  educational  activities  —  The  "One  thing  need- 
ful"—Death  at  Amsterdam  and  burial  at  Naarden  —  Family- 
history  of  Comenius  —  Alleged  calico  the  presidency  of  Harvard 
College  —  Portraits  —  Personal  characteristics. 

During  his  last  year's  residence  at  Saros-Patak, 
Comenius  had  sustained  a  great  loss  in  the  death  of 
his  friend  and  former  patron,  Lewis  de  Geer.  In  a 
funeral  oration  which  he  composed,  he  characterized 
his  benefactor  as  "a  man  pious  toward  God,  just 
toward  men,  merciful  to  the  distressed,  and  meritori- 
ously great  and  illustrious  among  all  men."  The  rich 
Dutch  merchant  bequeathed  his  estates  to  his  son, 
Lawrence  de  Geer  of  Amsterdam;  and  not  only  his 
estates,  but  also  his  deep  interest  in  the  welfare  of  the 
Moravian  reformer. 

Learning  of  the  severe  illness  of  Comenius,  Lawrence 
de  Geer  wrote  him  to  leave  Hamburg  and  come  directly 
to  Amsterdam,  where  all  the  needs  of  his  closing  years 
would  be  provided.  The  younger  de  Geer,  it  would 
seem,  had  not  only  a  real  and  profound  affection  for 
the  aged  Comenius,  but  also  a  keen  and  intelligent 
interest  in  all  his  schemes  for  educational  reform. 

Amsterdam  proved,  indeed,  a  haven  of"  rest  to  the 
weary  wanderer.    At  this  time  the  city  enjoyed  greater 

71 


72  COMENIUS 

religious  freedom  than  perhaps  any  other  city  in 
Europe.  Says  Benham :  "  Comenius  found  himself  in 
the  midst  of  a  community  then  enjoying  the  largest 
amount  of  religious  toleration  to  be  found  anywhere  in 
Europe,  and  with  it  a  great  diversity  of  religious 
opinions.  Unitarians  expelled  from  their  own  coun- 
tries here  united  themselves  to  the  friends  of  specu- 
lative philosophy  among  thei  Eemonstrants  and 
Arminians;  and  the  philosophy  of  Descartes  here 
found  admirers  even  among  the  members  of  the 
Eeformed  Church.  The  truly  evangelical  Comenius 
had  become  known  to  many  through  his  writings, 
which,  together  with  the  influence  of  his  patron's  son, 
Lawrence  de  Geer,  who  continued  his  father's  benevo- 
lence, induced  rich  merchants  to  intrust  him  with  the 
education  of  their  sons;  so  that,  with  the  additions 
accruing  from  his  literary  labors,  Comenius  found  a 
supply  of  food  and  raiment,  and  was  thereby  content." 

In  spite  of  his  advanced  age,  these  closing  years  of 
his  life  at  Amsterdam  were  busy  ones;  for  besides 
ministering  to  the  needs  of  the  scattered  land  disheart- 
ened ecclesiastics  of  the  Moravian  Brethren,  he  en- 
gaged somewhat  in  private  teaching,  and  saw  through 
the  press  a  complete  edition  of  his  educational  writ- 
ings. It  was  a  magnificent  volume  of  more  than  a 
thousand  pages,  and  was  printed  by  Christopher 
Cunard  and  Gabriel  a  Roy  under  the  title  All  the 
didactical  ivories  of  J.  A.  Comenius. 

The  publication  of  this  handsome  folio,  containing 
all  his  educational  writings,  was  made  possible  by  the 
generosity  of  Lawrence  de  Geer.  The  first  part  of 
the  folio,  written  between  1627  and  1642,  contains 
(1)  a  brief  narration  of  the  circumstances  which  led 


CLOSING  YEARS  73 

the  author  to  write  these  studies;  (2)  the  Great 
didactic,  showing  the  method  of  teaching  all  things ; 
(3)  the  School  of  infancy,  being  an  essay  on  the  edu- 
cation of  youth  during  the  first  six  years;  (4)  an 
account  of  a  six-class  vernacular  school;  (5)  the 
Janua;  (6)  the  Vestibulum;  (7)  David  Vechner's  Model 
of  a  temple  of  Latinity;  (8)  a  didactic  dissertation  on 
the  quadripartite  study  of  the  Latin  language ;  (9)  the 
circle  of  all  the  sciences;  (10)  various  criticisms  on 
the  same;  (11)  explanations  of  attempts  at  pansophy. 
The  second  part  of  the  folio,  written  between  1642 
and  1650,  contains  (1)  new  reasons  for  continuing  to 
devote  attention  to  didactic  studies ;  (2)  new  methods 
of  studying  languages,  built  upon  didactic  foundations ; 

(3)  vestibule  of  the  Latin  language  adapted  to  the 
laws  of  the  most  recent  methods  of  language  teaching; 

(4)  new  gate  of  the  Latin  language  exhibiting  the 
structure  of  things  and  words  in  their  natural  order ; 

(5)  a  Latin  and  German  introductory  lexicon  explain- 
ing a  multitude  of  derived  words ;  (6)  a  grammar  of 
the  Latin  and  vernacular,  with  short  commentaries; 

(7)  treatise   on  the  Latin  language  of  the  Atrium; 

(8)  certain  opinions  of  the  learned  on  these  new  views 
of  language  teaching. 

The  third  part  of  the  work,  written  between  1650 
and  1654,  contains  (1)  a  brief  account  of  his  call  to 
Hungary;  (2)  a  sketch  of  the  seven-class  pansophic 
school;  (3)  an  oration  on  the  culture  of  innate  capaci- 
ties; (4)  an  oration  on  books  as  the  primary  instru- 
ments in  the  cultivation  of  innate  capacities ;  (5)  on 
the  obstacles  to  the  acquisition  of  encyclopaedic  culture 
and  some  means  of  removing  these  obstacles;  (6)  a 
short  and  pleasant  way  of  learning  to  read  and  under- 


74  COMENIUS 

stand  the  Latin  authors ;  (7)  on  scholastic  erudition ; 
(8)  on  driving  idleness  from  the  schools ;  (9)  laws  for 
a  well-regulated  school;  (10)  the  Orbis pictus;  (11)  on 
scholastic  play;  (12)  valedictory  oration  delivered  on 
the  occasion  of  the  completion  of  his  labors  at  Saros- 
Patak;  (13)  funeral  oration  on  the  life  and  character 
of  Lewis  de  Geer. 

The  fourth  part  of  the  work  represents  the  years 
from  1654  to  1657.  It  contains  (1)  an  account  of  the 
author's  didactic  studies;  (2)  a  little  boy  to  little 
boys,  or  all  things  to  all ;  (3)  apology  for  the  Latinity 
of  Comenius;  (4)  the  art  of  wisely  reviewing  one's 
own  opinions ;  (5)  exits  from  scholastic  labyrinths  into 
the  open  plain;  (6)  the  formation  of  a  Latin  college; 
(7)  the  living  printing-press,  or  the  art  of  impressing 
wisdom  compendiously,  copiously,  and  elegantly,  not 
on  paper,  but  on  the  mind;  (8)  the  best  condition  of 
the  mind ;  (9)  a  devout  commendation  of  the  study  of 
wisdom. 

In  addition  to  his  literary  labors,  he  gave  much  time 
to  the  administration  of  church  affairs ;  for  Lissa  had 
risen  from  her  ashes  and  was  more  prosperous  than 
before  the  war.  Here  congregated  again  many  adhe- 
rents of  the  Moravian  brotherhood,  and  the  college  was 
rebuilt  and  resumed  its  beneficent  pedagogic  influ- 
ence. From  this  centre  the  Moravian  influence 
spread  anew  to  many  parts  of  Europe.  England, 
Prussia,  and  other  Protestant  countries  were  generous 
in  their  contributions  toward  the  restoration  of  Mora- 
vian churches.  All  this  money  was  sent  to  Comenius 
at  Amsterdam,  and  by  him  apportioned  to  the  scat- 
tered brethren.  He  received  thirty  thousand  dollars 
from  England  alone  during  the  years  1658  and  1659; 


CLOSING  YEARS  75 

the  only  stipulation  made  in  the  disposition  of  the 
money  was  that  a  portion  of  it  should  be  used  for  the 
printing  of  Polish  and  Bohemian  Bibles.  The  last 
years  of  his  life  were  occupied  almost  wholly  in  such 
ministrations. 

He  published  in  1668  his  swan  song,  the  One  thing 
needful.  This  is  his  farewell  address  to  the  world. 
It  delineates  in  a  forceful  yet  modest  way  his  aspira- 
tions for  educational  reform,  gives  expression  of  the 
deep  faith  which  sustained  him  during  the  long  years 
of  his  weary  pilgrimage,  and  burns  with  enthusiastic 
zeal  for  the  welfare  of  mankind  —  the  burning  passion 
of  his  life.  He  was  well  prepared  at  the  advanced 
age  of  seventy-six  years  to  sum  up  the  experience 
of  a  long  and  afflicted  life. 

A  few  citations  from  this  touching  bit  of  reminis- 
cence will  hint  at  the  motives  which  actuated  him  in 
his  life-work  as  an  educational  reformer.  "  I  thank 
God  that  I  have  been  all  my  life  a  man  of  aspirations ; 
and  although  He  has  brought  me  into  many  labyrinths, 
yet  He  has  so  protected  me  that  either  I  have  soon 
worked  my  way  out  of  them,  or  He  has  brought  me  by 
His  own  hand  to  the  enjoyment  of  holy  rest.  For  the 
desire  after  good,  if  it  is  always  in  the  heart,  is  a 
living  stream  that  flows  from  God,  the  fountain  of  all 
good.  The  blame  is  ours  if  we  do  not  follow  the 
stream  to  its  source  or  to  its  overflow  into  the  sea, 
where  there  is  fulness  and  satiety  of  good." 

"One  of  my  chief  employments  has  been  the 
improvement  of  schools,  which  I  undertook  and  con- 
tinued for  many  years  from  the  desire  to  deliver  the 
youth  in  the  schools  from  the  labyrinth  in  which  they 
are  entangled.     Some  have  held  this  business  foreign 


76  COMENIUS 

to  a  theologian,  as  if  Christ  had  not  connected  together 
and  given  to  his  beloved  disciple  Peter  at  the  same 
time  the  two  commands,  'Feed  my  sheep'  and  'Feed 
my  lambs.'  I  thank  Christ  for  inspiring  me  with 
such  affection  toward  his  lambs,  and  for  regulating  my 
exertions  in  the  form  of  educational  works.  I  trust 
that  when  the  winter  of  indifference  has  passed  that 
my  endeavors  will  bring  forth  some  fruit." 

"My  life  here  was  not  my  native  country,  but  a 
pilgrimage ;  my  home  was  ever  changing,  and  I  found 
nowhere  an  abiding  resting  place.  But  now  I  see  my 
heavenly  country  near  at  hand,  to  whose  gates  my 
Saviour  has  gone  before  me  to  prepare  the  way.  After 
years  of  wandering  and  straying  from  the  direction  of 
my  journey,  delayed  by  a  thousand  extraneous  diver- 
sions, I  am  at  last  within  the  bounds  of  the  promised 
land." 

The  rest  and  peace  and  glory  which  he  so  hopefully 
anticipated  came  to  him  at  Amsterdam  on  the  15th  of 
November,  in  the  year  1670.  His  remains  were  con- 
veyed to  Naarden,  a  small  town  on  the  Zuyder  Zee, 
twelve  miles  east  of  Amsterdam,  where  they  were 
interred  in  the  French  Reformed  Church,  on  the  22d 
of  November.  The  figure  8  was  the  only  epitaph 
placed  on  his  tomb.  More  than  a  century  afterward 
the  church  was  transformed  into  a  military  barracks, 
and  for  many  years  the  date  of  his  death,  the  church 
in  which  he  was  buried,  and  the  grave  inclosing  his 
remains  were  unknown.  But  in  1871  Mr.  de  Roper, 
a  lawyer  residing  in  Naarden,  found  among  his  father's 
papers  the  church  register,  the  sexton's  account  book, 
and  other  documents  relating  to  the  old  French 
Reformed  Church.     After  the  figure  8,  in  the  church 


CLOSING  YEARS  77 

register,  was  this  entry :  "  John  Amos  Comenius,  the 
famous  author  of  the  Janua  Linguarum;  interred  the 
22d  of  November,  1670."  A  diligent  search  was 
instituted,  and  the  grave  was  found.  An  aged  woman 
residing  in  Naarden  recalled  the  location  of  the  French 
Eeformed  Church  as  the  present  site  of  the  barracks. 
By  permission  of  the  commanding  officer,  an  examina- 
tion was  made  and  the  tombstone  marked  8  was  found. 
The  remains  were  subsequently  removed  to  a  little 
park  in  Naarden,  where  there  was  erected  to  his 
memory,  in  1892,  by  friends  of  education  in  Europe 
and  America,  a  handsome  monument.  This  consists 
of  a  pyramid  of  rough  stones  with  two  white  marble 
slabs  containing  gold-furrowed  inscriptions  in  Latin, 
Dutch,  and  Czech  (Bohemian)  :  "  A  grateful  posterity 
to  the  memory  of  John  Amos  Comenius,  born  at 
Nivnitz  on  the  28th  of  March,  1592 ;  died  at  Amster- 
dam on  the  15th  of  November,  1670 ;  buried  at  Naar- 
den  on  the  22d  of  November,  1670.  He  fought  a 
good  fight."  A  room  in  the  town  hall  at  Naarden  has 
been  set  aside  as  a  permanent  Comenius  museum, 
where  will  be  found  a  collection  of  his  portraits,  sets 
of  the  different  editions  of  his  writings,  and  the  old 
stone  slab  containing  the  figure  8. 

The  present  work  being  an  educational  rather  than 
a  personal  life  of  Comenius,  no  reference  has  thus  far 
been  made  to  his  family  life.  It  may  be  noted  briefly 
that  he  married,  in  1624,  Elizabeth  Cyrrill,  with 
whom  he  had  five  children,  a  son  (Daniel)  and  four 
daughters.  Elizabeth  died  in  1648  and  he  married 
again  on  the  17th  of  May,  1649,  Elizabeth  Gainsowa, 
with  whom  he  appears  to  have  had  no  children.  A 
third  marriage  is  mentioned  by  some  of  his  biog- 


78  COMENIUS 

raphers,  but  the  statement  lacks  corroboration.  One 
daughter,  Elizabeth,  married  Peter  Figulus  Jablonsky, 
who  was  bishop  of  the  Church  from  November,  1662, 
until  his  death,  January  the  12th,  1670.  Their  son 
Daniel  Ernst  Jablonsky  was  consecrated  a  bishop  of 
the  Polish  branch  of  the  Moravian  Church  at  Lissa 
March  the  10th,  1699.  He  served  the  Church  until 
his  death,  May  the  25th,  1741. 

An  account  of  the  life  of  Comenius  would  be  incom- 
plete without  some  reference  to  his  alleged  call  to 
the  presidency  of  Harvard  College.  This  rests  upon, 
an  unconfirmed  statement  by  Cotton  Mather.  In  his 
Magnolia1  he  says:  "Mr.  Henry  Dunster  continued 
the  Praesident  of  Harvard-College  until  his  unhappy 
Entanglement  in  the  Snares  of  Anabaptism  fill'd  the 
Overseers  with  un'easie  Fears,  lest  the  Students  by  his 
means  should  come  to  be  Ensnared:  Which  Uneasi- 
ness was  at  length  so  signified  unto  him,  that  on 
October  24,  1654,  he  presented  unto  the  Overseers, 
an  Instrument  under  his  Hands,  wherein  he  Resigned 
his  Presidentship  and  they  accepted  his  Resignation. 
That  brave  Old  Man  Johannes  Amos  Commenius,  the 
Fame  of  whose  Worth  has  been  Trumpetted  as  far  as 
more  than  Three  Languages  (whereof  every  one  is 
Endebted  unto  his  Janua)  could  carry  it,  was  agreed 
withall,  by  our  Mr.  Winthrop  in  his  Travels  through 
the  Low  Countries  to  come  over  into  New  England 
and  Illuminate  this  College  and  Country  in  the  Quality 
of  a  President.     But  the  Solicitations  of  the  Swedish 


1  Magnolia  Christi  Americana,  or  the  ecclesiastical  history  of 
New  England.  By  the  Reverend  and  Learned  Cotton  Mather  and 
Pastor  of  the  North  Church  in  Boston,  New  England.  London,  1702. 
Book  IV,  p.  128. 


CLOSING  YEARS  79 

Ambassador,  diverting  him  another  way,  that  Incom- 
parable Moravian  became  not  an  American." 

The  following  evidence  makes  improbable  this 
call :  — 

1.  Some  years  ago  the  writer  asked  Professor  Paul 
H.  Hanus  to  ascertain  for  him  if  the  records  of  Har- 
vard College  corroborated  Mather's  statement.  After 
examining  the  proceedings  of  the  overseers  and  all 
other  records  of  the  college  during  its  early  history, 
he  reported  that  he  could  not  find  the  slightest  cor- 
roboration of  Mather's  statement,  and  that  he  seriously 
doubted  its  accuracy. 

2.  The  historians  of  the  college  —  Peirce,  Quincy, 
and  Eliot  —  do  not  allude  to  the  matter.  And  Presi- 
dent Josiah  Quincy,1  in  his  complete  and  standard 
history  of  the  institution,  refers  to  the  "loose  and 
exaggerated  terms  in  which  Mather  and  Johnson,  and 
other  writers  of  that  period,  speak  of  the  early  dona- 
tions to  the  college,  and  the  obscurity,  and  not  to  say 
confusion,  in  which  they  appear  in  the  first  records  of 
the  seminary." 

3.  Careful  examination  has  been  made  of  the 
numerous  lives  of  Comenius  printed  in  the  German 
language,  as  well  as  those  printed  in  the  Czech ;  and, 
although  less  noteworthy  distinctions  are  recorded, 
there  is  no  mention  of  a  call  to  Harvard  College  or 
America. 

4.  In  the  Journals  of  Governor  John  Winthrop  of 
Massachusetts,  there  are  no  allusions  to  Comenius. 
Governor  Winthrop  died  in  1649 ;  and  it  was  not  until 
1653  that  President  Dunster  fell  "  into  the  briers  of 

1  The  history  of  Harvard  university.  By  Josiah  Quincy.  Bos- 
ton, 1840.    2  vols. 


80  COMENIUS 

Antpsedo-baptism,"  when  he  bore  "public  testimony 
in  the  church  at  Cambridge  against  the  administration 
of  baptism  to  any  infant  whatsoever."  And  the  his- 
torians of  the  college  report  that  up  to  this  time 
(1653)  Dunster's  administration  had  been  singularly 
satisfactory,  so  that  there  could  have  been  no  thought 
of  providing  his  successor  before  the  death  of  Governor 
Winthrop.  Mather  is  either  in  error  or  he  does  not 
refer  to  Governor  Winthrop  of  Massachusetts.  He 
may  refer  to  Governor  Winthrop  of  Connecticut, 
the  eldest  son  of  the  Massachusetts  governor,  although 
evidence  is  wanting  to  show  that  the  Connecticut 
governor  had  anything  to  do  with  the  management  of 
Harvard  College.  Young  Winthrop  was  in  England 
from  August  the  3d,  1641,  until  the  early  part  of  1643. 
It  will  be  recalled  that  Comenius  spent  the  winter  of 
1641-1642  in  London,  and  the  fact  that  both  knew 
Hartlib  most  intimately  would  suggest  that  they  must 
have  met.  In  a  letter  which  Hartlib  wrote  to  Winthrop 
after  the  latter's  return  to  America,  he  says,  "Mr. 
Comenius  is  continually  diverted  by  particular  con- 
troversies of  Socinians  and  others  from  his  main 
Pansophical  Worke."1 

5.  Mather  is  clearly  in  error  in  regard  to  the  date 
of  the  call  of  Comenius  to  Sweden.  The  negotiations 
were  begun  in  1641  and  were  completed  in  August  of 
the  next  year,  so  that  the  "  solicitations  of  the  Swed- 
ish Ambassador  diverting  him  another  way"  took 
place  more  than  twelve  years  before  the  beginning  of 

1  Correspondence  of  Hartlib,  HaaJc,  Oldenburg,  and  others  of  the 
founders  of  the  Royal  Society  with  Governor  Winthrop  of  Connect- 
icut, 1661-1672.  With  an  introduction  and  notes  by  Robert  C.  Win- 
throp.   Boston,  1878. 


CLOSING  YEAKS  81 

the  troubles  at  Cambridge  which  led  to  the  resignation 
of  Dunster. 

With  so  many  flaws  in  Mather's  statement,  and  the 
absence  of  corroborative  evidence,  it  seems  altogether 
improbable  that  Comenius  was  ever  called  to  the 
presidency  of  Harvard  College.1 

In  closing,  brief  mention  may  be  made  of  his  most 
dominant  physical  and  personal  characteristics. 
Several  excellent  portraits  of  Comenius  are  in  exist- 
ence, the  best  perhaps  being  by  Hollar  and  Glover. 
From  these  it  is  apparent  that  he  was  a  man  of 
imposing  figure,  with  high  forehead,  long  chin,  and 
soft,  pathetic  eyes.  It  is  not  difficult  to  read  into 
his  sad,  expressive  countenance  the  force  of  the 
expression  in  his  last  published  utterance,  "My 
whole  life  was  merely  the  visit  of  a  guest;  I  had  no 
fatherland." 

There  is  no  conflicting  evidence  on  the  personal  life 
of  the  reformer;  but  rather  unanimous  agreement  on 
the  sweetness  and  beauty  of  his  character.  Says 
Palacky:  "In  his  intercourse  with  others,  Comenius 
was  in  an  extraordinary  degree  friendly,  conciliatory, 
and  humble ;  always  ready  to  serve  his  neighbor  and 
sacrifice  himself.  His  writings,  as  well  as  his  walk 
and  conversation,  show  the  depth  of  his  feeling,  his 
goodness,  his  uprightness,  and  his  fear  of  God.  He 
never  cast  back  upon  his  opponents  what  they  meted 
out  to  him.     He  never  condemned,   no  matter  how 

1  For  further  discussion  of  the  question  see  my  article,  "  Was 
Comenius  called  to  the  presidency  of  Harvard  ?  "  in  the  Educational 
Review,  November,  1896,  Vol.  XII,  pp.  378-382,  and  the  article  by 
Mr.  James  H.  Blodgett  in  the  same  Review  for  November,  1898,  Vol. 
XVI,  pp.  390-393 ;  also  the  closing  chapter  in  Professor  Hanus'  Educa- 
tional aims  and  educational  values  (New  York,  1899),  pp.  206-211. 
G 


82  COMENIUS 

great  the  injustice  which  he  was  made  to  suffer.  At 
all  times,  with  fullest  resignation,  whether  joy  or 
sorrow  was  his  portion,  he  honored  and  praised  the 
Lord."  Raumer  says  of  him:  "Comenius  is  a  grand 
and  venerable  figure  of  sorrow.  Wandering,  perse- 
cuted, and  homeless  during  the  terrible  and  desolating 
Thirty  Years'  War,  he  never  despaired,  but,  with 
enduring  and  faithful  truth,  labored  unceasingly  to 
prepare  youth  by  a  better  education  for  a  better  future. 
His  unfailing  aspirations  lifted  up  in  a  large  part  of 
Europe  many  good  men  prostrated  by  the  terrors  of 
the  times  and  inspired  them  with  the  hope  that  by 
pious  and  wise  systems  of  education  there  might  be 
reared  up  a  race  of  men  more  pleasing  to  God."  Well 
might  Herder  say :  "  Comenius  was  a  noble  priest  of 
humanity,  whose  single  end  and  aim  in  life  was  the 
welfare  of  all  mankind." 


, ,  ^Zt^^i c£l<+&  <**+-■  st^cif&uX^ 

CHAPTER  VI 

PHILOSOPHY  OF  EDUCATION 

The  Great  didactic —  Conditions  under  which  prodt 
„1k*ta*riL.  .Purpose  of  edm'-alion  —  Man's  craving  for  knowledge 
— Youth  thft  tinre  for  training  —(Private  instruction  undesirable} 
-+  Educatie*  for  girls  as  wellas  boys  A-  Uniform  methods.  Edu- 
catiorj^cording  to  nature  —  How  nature  teaches  —  Selection  and 
adaptation  of  materials  —  Or^aniyatiop  nf  pupils  into  classes  — 
Correlation  of  studies.  Methods  of  instruction  —  Science  —  Arts 
--Language  —  Morals  —  Religion.  Types  of  educational  institu- 
tions—  The  mother's  school  —  School  of  the  mother-tongue  — 
Latin  school — University.  School  discipline — Character  and 
purpose  of  discipline  —  Corporal  punishment  only  in  cases  of 
moral  perversity. 

The  Great  Didactic 

Most  comprehensive  of  all  of  the  educational  writ- 
ings of  Comenius  is  the  Great  didactic.  It  was 
planned  in  1628,  while  yet  in  the  full  possession  of 
his  vigor,  before  misfortune  had  hampered  his  useful- 
ness and  persecution  had  made  him  a  wanderer. 
Written  originally  in  the  Czech,  it  was  translated  into 
the  Latin  and  published  at  Amsterdam  in  1657.  The 
original  Czech  manuscript  was  discovered  at  Lissa  in 
1841,  and  presented  to  the  museum  at  Prague;  but 
the  Austrian  censors  of  the  press  forbade  its  publica- 
tion because  Comenius  was  a  Bohemian  exile  (!). 
Through  the  exertions  of  the  museum  authorities,  how- 
ever, it  was  allowed  to  be  printed  in  1849.  Professor 
Laurie  gave  English  readers  a  summary  of  the  Great 

83 


84  COMENIUS 

didactic  in  his  Life  and  educational  works  of  John 
Amos  Comenius  (London,  1883)  j  but  the  first  complete 
translation  was  made  by  Mr.  M.  W.  Keatinge  of 
Edinburgh  in  1896. 

The  full  title  is :  The  great  didactic  setting  forth  the 
whole  art  of  teaching  all  things  to  all  men  ;  or  a  certain 
inducement  to  found  such  schools  in  all  parishes,  towns, 
and  villages  of  every  Christian  kingdom  that  the  entire 
youth  of  both  sexes,  none  being  excepted,  shall  quickly, 
pleasantly,  and  thoroughly  become  learned  in  the  sciences, 
pure  in  morals,  trained  in  piety,  and  in  this  manner  in- 
structed in  all  things  necessary  for  the  present  and  future 
life,  in  which,  with  respect  to  everything  that  is  suggested, 
its  fundamental  principles  are  set  forth  from  the  essential 
nature  of  the  matter,  its  truth  is  proved  by  examples,  from 
the  several  mechanical  arts  its  order  is  clearly  set  forth  in 
years,  months,  days,  and  hours  ;  and  finally  an  easy  and 
sure  method  is  shown  by  which  it  can  be  pleasantly 
brought  into  existence. 

/^The  purpose  of  the  Great  didactic,  as  announced  by 
(  Comenius  in  the  preface,  is  to  seek  and  find  a  method 
of  instruction  by  which  teachers  may  teach  less,  but 
learners  may  learn  more ;  schools  may  be  the  scene  of 
less  noise,  aversion,  and  useless  labor,  but  of  more 
leisure,  enjoyment,  and  solid  progress;  the  Christian 
community  have  less  darkness,  perplexity,  and  dis- 
sension, but  more  light,  peace,  and  rest.  He  prom- 
ises in  his  "  greeting  "  an  "  art  of  teaching  all  things 
to  all  men,|  and  of  teaching  them  with  certainty,  so 
that  the  result  cannot  fail.'!  Among  the  uses  of  such 
an  art  he  notes  the  advantage  (1)  to  parents,  that  they 
may  know  that  if  correct  methods  have  been  employed 
with  unerring  accuracy,    it   is    impossible   that   the 


PHILOSOPHY  OF  EDUCATION  85 

desired  result  should  not  follow;  (2)  to  teachers,  who, 
without  a  knowledge  of  this  art,  try  in  turn  first  one 
plan  and  then  another  —  a  course  which  involves  a 
tedious  waste  of  time  and  energy;  and  (3)  to  schools, 
that  they  may  become  places  of  amusement,  houses  of 
delight  and  attraction,  and  that  they  may  cause  learn- 
ing to  flourish.  Such,  in  brief,  ar€iundamental  prin- 
ciples of  a  philosophy  of  education.  yHow  well  those 
principles  were  elaborated  and  applied  will  be  seen  in 
the  exposition  of  his  writings  which  follows. 

Purpose  of  Education 

The  opening  chapters  of  the  Great  didactic  treat  of 
man  as  the  highest,  the  most  absolute,  and  the  most* 
excellent  of  created  beings:  of  the  life  beyond  as  ■ 
man's  ultimate  end,  and  of  this  life  as  merely  a  prepa- 
ration for  eternity.  The  human  being  passes  through 
three  stages  in  his  preparation  for  eternity  —  he  learns 
to  know  himself,  to  rule  himself,  and  to  direct  him- 
self to  God.  Man's  natural  craving  is  for  knowledge,  . 
—  learning,  virtue,  piety,  —  and  the  seeds  of  .knowl- 
edge are  implanted  in  every  rational  creature.  The 
mind  of  man  is  unlimited  in  its  aspirations.  "  The 
body  is  enclosed  by  small  boundaries ;  the  voice  roams 
within  wider  limits ;  the  sight  is  bounded  only  by  the 
vault  of  heaven;  but  for  the  mind,  neither  in  heaven 
nor  anywhere  outside  of  heaven  can  a  boundary  be 
fixed  for  it." 

Man  delights  in  harmony;  and,  as  respects  both  his 
mind  and  his  body,  he  is  a  harmony.  Just  as  the 
great  world  itself  is  like  an  immense  piece  of  clock- 
work, put  together  with  many  wheels  and  bells,  and 
arranged  with  such  art  that,  throughout  the  whole 


OF  THB 

UNIVPRCT 


86  COMENIUS 

structure,  one  part  depends  upon  another  through  the 
harmony  and  perfection  of  the  movements  —  so  it  is 
with  man.  All  this  harmony  and  perfection  is  made 
possible  through  education. 

He  gave  no  bad  definition,  remarks  Comenius,  who 
said  that  man  was  a  "teachable  animal."  But  he  must) 
be  taught,  since  he  is  born  only  with  aptitudes. 
Before  he  can  sit,  stand,  walk,  or  use  his  hands,  hej 
requires  instruction.  It  is  the  law  of  all  created 
things  that  they  develop  gradually  and  ultimately 
reach  a  state  of  perfection.  Plato  was  right  when  he 
said,  "  If  properly  educated,  man  is  the  gentlest  and 
most  divine  of  created  beings ;  but  if  left  uneducated 
or  subjected  to  a  false  training,  he  is  the  most 
intractable  thing  in  the  world."  */ 

Education  is  necessary  for  all  classes  of  society; 
and  this  is  the  more  apparent  when  we  consider  the 
marked  individual  differences  to  be  found  among 
human  beings.  No  one  doubts  that  the  stupid  need 
instruction  that  they  may  outgrow  their  stupidity. 
But  clever  and  precocious  minds  require  more  careful 
instruction  than  dull  and  backward  minds;  since  those 
who  are  mentally  active,  if  not  occupied  with  useful 
things,  will  busy  themselves  with  what  is  useless,  curi- 
ous, and  pernicious.  Just  as  a  millstone  grinds  itself 
away  with  noise  if  wheat  is  not  supplied,  so  an  active 
mind,  if  void  of  serious  things,  entangles  itself  with 
vain,  curious,  and  noxious  thoughts,  and  becomes  the 
cause  of  its  own  destruction. 

The  time  for  education  is  in  early  youth.1    God  has, 

1  For  an  excellent  discussion  of  the  meaning  of  infancy  see  Pro- 
fessor John  Fiske's  Excursions  of  an  evolutionist  (Boston,  1896), 
pp.  306-319,  and  Professor  Nicholas  Murray  Butler's  Meaning  of 
education  (New  York,  1898) ,  pp.  3-34. 


PHILOSOPHY  OF  EDUCATION  87 

accordingly,  made  the  years  of  childhood  unsuitable 
for  anything  but  education;  and  this  matter  was 
interposed  by  the  deliberate  intent  of  a  wise  Provi- 
dence. Youth  is  a  period  of  great  plasticity.  It  is 
in  the  nature  of  everything  that  comes  into  being  to 
bend  and  form  easily  while  tender;  but  when  the 
plastic  period  has  passed  to  alter  only  with  great  diffi- 
culty. If  one  wishes  to  become  a  good  tailor,  writer, 
or  musician,  he  must  apply  himself  to  his  art  from 
his  earliest  youth,  during  the  period  when  his 
imagination  is  most  active  and  when  his  fingers  are 
most  flexible.  Only  during  the  years  of  childhood  is 
it  possible  to  train  the  muscles  to  do  skilled  work.  If, 
then,  parents  have  the  welfare  of  their  children  at 
heart,  and  if  the  good  of  the  human  race  be  dear  to 
the  civil  and  ecclesiastical  guardians  of  society,  let 
them  hasten  to  make  provision  for  the  timely  plant- 
ing, pruning,  and  watering  of  the  plants  of  heaven 
that  these  may  be  prudently  formed  in  letters,  virtue, 
and  piety. 

Private  education  is  not  desirable.  Children  should 
be  trained  in  common,  since  better  results  and  more 
pleasures  are  to  be  obtained  when  they  are  taught 
together  in  classes.  Not  only  is  class  teaching  a 
saving  of  labor  over  private  instruction,  but  it  intro- 
duces a  rivalry  that  is  both  needful  and  helpful. 
Moreover,  young  children  learn  much  that  is  useful 
by  imitation  through  association  with  school-fellows. 
Comenius,  it  may  be  remarked,  was  one  of  the  first 
of  the  educational  reformers  to  see  clearly  the  value 
of  class  teaching  and  graded  instruction.  His  reforms 
in  this  direction  have  already  been  noted. 

School  training  is  necessary  for  the  children  of  all 


88  COMENIUS 

grades  of  society,  not  of  the  rich  and  powerful  only, 
but  the  poor  and  lowly  as  well.  Let  none  be  neglected, 
unless  God  has  denied  him  sense  and  intelligence. 
When  it  is  urged  that  the  laboring  classes  need  no 
school  education,  let  it  be  also  recalled  that  they  are 
expected  to  think,  obey,  and  do  good. 

Girls  should  be  educated  as  well  as  boys.  No  satis- 
factory reason  can  be  given  why  women  should  be 
excluded  from  the  pursuits  of  knowledge,  whether  in 
the  Latin  or  in  the  mother-tongue.  They  are  formed 
in  the  image  of  God  as  well  as  men;  and  they  are 
endowed  with  equal  sharpness  of  mind  and  capacity 
for  learning,  often,  indeed,  with  more  than  the  oppo- 
site sex.  Why,  then,  should  we  admit  them  to  the 
alphabet,  and  afterwards  drive  them  away  from  books? 
Comenius  takes  issue  with  most  writers  on  education 
that  study  will  make  women  blue-stockings  and  chat- 
terboxes. On  the  contrary,  he  maintains,  the  more 
their  minds  are  occupied  with  the  fruits  of  learning, 
the  less  room  and  temptation  there  will  be  for  gossip 
and  folly. 

S  Not  only  should  education  be  common  to  all  classes 
of  society,  but  the  subjects  of  instruction  should  be 
common  to  the  whole  range  of  knowledge^  Comenius 
holds  that  it  is  the  business  of*  educators  to  take 
strong  and  vigorous  measures  that  no  man  in  his 
journey  through  life  may  encounter  anything  so  un- 
known to  him  that  he  will  be  unable  to  pass  sound 
judgment  upon  it  and  turn  it  to  its  proper  use  without 
serious  error.  This  desire  for  encyclopaedic  learning, 
as  already  noted,  dominated  his  life  and  writings. 
,.*l£ut    even    Comenius    recognized    the    futility    of 

-^thoroughness  in  a  wide  range  of  instruction,  and  he 


PHILOSOPHY  OF  EDUCATION  89 

expresses  willingness  to  be  satisfied  if  men  know  the 
principles,  the  causes,  and  the  uses  of  all  things  in 
existence;///it  is  general  culture  —  something  about  a 
great^many  things  —  that  he  demands. 
/^Comenius  clearly  saw  that  the  conditions  of  educa- 
tional institutions  were  wholly  inadequate  for  the 
realization  of  these  purposes  —  (1)  because  of  an 
insufficient  number  of  schools,  and  (2)  because  of  the 
unscientific  character  of  current  methods  of  instruc- 
tion. The  exhortations  of  Martin  Luther,  he  observes, 
remedied  the  former  shortcoming,  but  it  remains  for 
the  future  to  improve  the  latter. 

The  best  intellects  are  ruined  by  unsympathetic  and 
unpedagogic  methods.  Such  great  severity  character- 
izes the  schools  that  they  are  looked  upon  as  terrors 
for  the  boys  and  shambles  for  their  intellects.  Most 
of  the  students  contract  a  dislike  for  learning,  and 
many  leave  school  altogetherTjThe  few  who  are  forced 
by  parents  and  guardians  to  remain  acquire  a  most 
preposterous  and  wretched  sort  of  education,  so  that 
instead  of  tractable  lambs,  the  schools  produce  wild 
asses  and  restive  mules.  Nothing  could  be  more 
wretched  than  the  discipline  of  the  schools.  "What 
should  be  gently  instilled  into  the  intellect  is  violently 
impressed  upon  it,  nay,  rather  flogged  into  it.  How  T) 
many,  indeed,  leave  the  schools  and  uniyersities  withjj 
scarcely  a  notion  of  true  learning."  Comenius  laments 
that  he  and  many  thousands  of  his  contemporaries 
have  miserably  lost  the  sweet  springtime  of  life  and 
wasted  the  fresh  years  of  youth  on  scholastic  trifles. 


90  COMENIUS 

Education  according  to  Nature 

Comenius  proposes  to  so  reconstruct  systems  of 
education  that  (t)  all  shall  be  educated,  except  those 
to  whom  God  has  denied  understanding,  in  all  those 
subjects  calculated  to  make  men  wise,  virtuous,  and 
pious ;  (#)  the  course  of  training,  being  a  preparation 
for  life,  shall  be  completed  before  maturity  is  attained ; 
(3)  and  schools  shall  be  conducted  without  blows, 
gently  and  pleasantly,  in  the  most  natural  manner. 
Bold  innovator !  How  clearly  he  perceived  the  faults 
of  the  schools  of  his  day ;  with  what  keen  insight  he 
formulated  methods  for  their  improvement;  and  with 
what  hope  in  the  reform  which  has  gone  forward 
steadily  for  these  two  hundred  and  seventy-five  years, 
but  which  even  now  is  far  from  being  an  accomplished 
fact! 

The  basis  of  the  reform  which  he  advocates  is  an 
application  of  the  principle  of  order  —  order  in  the 
management  of  time,  in  the  arrangement  of  subjects 
taught,  and  in  the  methods  employed.  Nature  fur- 
nishes us  a  criterion  for  order  in  all  matters  pertain- 
ing to  the  improvement  of  human  society.  Certain 
universal  principles,  which  are  fundamental  to  his 
philosophy  of  education,  are  deduced  from  nature. 
These,  stripped  of  their  tedious  examples  and  details, 
are:  — 

1.  Nature  observes  a  suitable  time. 

2.  She  prepares  the  material  before  she  attempts  to 
give  it  form. 

3.  She  chooses  a  fit  subject  to  act  upon,  or  first 
\  submits  her  subject  to  a  suitable  treatment  in  order  to 

make  it  fit. 


PHILOSOPHY  OF  EDUCATION  91 

4.  She  is  not  confused  in  her  operations;  but,  in 
her  onward  march,  advances  with  precision  from  one 
point  to  another. 

5.  In  all  the  operations  of  nature,  development  is 
from  within. 

6.  In  her  formative  processes,  she  begins  with  the 
universal  and  ends  with  the  particular. 

7.  Nature  makes  no  leaps,  but  proceeds  step  by- 
step. 

8.  When  she  begins  a  thing,  she  does  not  leave  off 
until  the  operation  is  completed. 

9.  She  avoids  all  obstacles  that  are  likely  to  inter- 
fere with  her  operations. 

With  nature  as  our  guide,  Comenius  believes  that 
the  process  of  education  will  be  easy,  (1)  if  it  is  begun 
before  the  mind  is  corrupted;  (2)  if  the  mind  is  pre- 
pared to  receive  it ;  (3)  if  we  proceed  from  the  general 
to  the  particular,  from  what  is  easy  to  what  is  more 
complex;  (4)  if  the  pupils  are  not  overburdened  with 
too  many  different  studies;  (5)  if  the  instruction  is 
graded  to  the  stages  of  the  mental  development  of  the 
learners;  (6)  if  the  interests  of  the  children  are  con- 
sulted and  their  intellects  are  not  forced  along  lines 
for  which  they  have  no  natural  bent;  (7)  if  everything 
is  taught  through  the  medium  of  the  senses ;  (8)  if  the 
utility  of  instruction  is  emphasized;  and  (9)  if  every- 
thing is  taught  by  one  and  the  same  method. 

Nature  begins  by  a  careful  selection  of  materials, 
therefore  education  should  commence  early ;  the  pupils 
should  not  have  more  than  one  teacher  in  each  subject, 
and  before  anything  else  is  done,  the  morals  should  be 
rendered  harmonious  by  the  teacher's  influence. 

Nature  always  makes  preparation  for  each  advance 


92  COMENIUS 

step;  therefore,  the  desire  to  know  and  to  learn  should 
be  excited  in  children  in  every  way  possible,  and  the 
method  of  instruction  should  lighten  the  drudgery, 
that  there  may  be  nothing  to  hinder  progress  in  school 
studies. 

Nature  develops  everything  from  beginnings  which, 
though  insignificant  in  appearance,  possess  great  poten- 
tial strength ;  whereas,  the  practice  of  most  teachers  is 
in  direct  opposition  to  this  principle.  Instead  of  start- 
ing with  fundamental  facts,  they  begin  with  a  chaos 
of  diverse  conclusions. 

Nature  advances  from  what  is  easy  to  what  is  more 
difficult.  It  is,  therefore,  wrong  to  teach  the  unknown 
through  the  medium  of  that  which  is  equally  unknown. 
Such  errors  may  be  avoided  if  pupils  and  teachers  talk 
in  the  same  language  and  explanations  are  given  in  the 
language  that  the  pupil  understands ;  if  grammars  and 
dictionaries  are  adapted  in  the  language  and  to  the 
understanding  of  the  pupils;  if,  in  the  study  of  a 
foreign  language,  the  pupils  first  learn  to  understand 
it,  then  to  write  it,  and  lastly  to  speak  it;  if  in  such 
study  the  pupils  get  to  know  first  that  which  is  nearest 
to  their  mental  vision,  then  that  which  lies  moderately 
near,  then  that  which  is  more  remote,  and  lastly  that 
which  is  farthest  off;  and  if  children  be  made  to  exer- 
cise first  their  senses,  then  their  memory,  and  finally 
their  understanding. 

Nature  does  not  overburden  herself,  but  is  content 
with  a  little  at  a  time ;  therefore  the  mental  energies 
of  the  pupils  should  not  be  dissipated  over  a  wide 
range  of  subject-matter. 

Nature  advances  slowly;  therefore  school  sessions 
should  be  shortened  to  four  hours ;  pupils  should  be 


PHILOSOPHY  OF  EDUCATION  93 

forced  to  memorize  as  little  as  possible ;  school  instruc- 
tion should  be  graded  to  the  ages  and  capacities  of  the 
children. 

Nature  compels  nothing  to  advance  that  is  not  driven 
forward  by  its  own  mature  strength ;  therefore  it  fol- 
lows that  nothing  should  be  taught  to  children  not 
demanded  by  their  age,  interests,  and  mental  ability. 

Nature  assists  her  operations  in  every  possible 
manner;  therefore  children  should  not  be  punished 
for  inability  to  learn.  Kather,  instruction  should  be 
given  through  the  senses  that  it  may  be  retained  in 
the  memory  with  less  effort. 

Nothing  is  produced  by  nature  the  practical  applica- 
tion of  which  is  not  evident;  therefore  those  things 
only  should  be  taught  whose  application  can  be  easily 
demonstrated. 

Nature  is  uniform  in  all  her  operations ;  hence  the 
same  method  of  instruction  should  be  adapted  to  all 
subjects  of  study,  and  the  text-books  in  each  subject 
should,  as  far  as  possible,  be  of  the  same  editions. 

Comenius  observes  that  there  is  a  very  general  com- 
plaint that  few  leave  school  with  a  thorough  education, 
and  that  most  of  the  instruction  retained  in  after  life 
is  little  more  than  a  mere  shadow  of  true  knowledge. 
He  considers  that  the  complaint  is  well  corroborated 
by  facts,  and  attributes  the  cause  to  the  insignificant 
and  unimportant  studies  with  which  the  schools  occupy 
themselves.  If  we  would  correct  this  evil, we  must  go 
to  the  school  of  nature  and  investigate  the  methods 
she  adopts  to  give  endurance  to  the  beings  which  she 
has  created. 

A  method  should  be  found  by  means  of  which  each 
person  will  be  able  not  only  to  bring  into  his  mental 


94  COMENIUS 

consciousness  that  which  he  has  learned,  but  at  the 
same  time  to  pass  sound  judgment  on  the  objective 
facts  to  which  his  information  refers.  This  will  be 
possible  if  only  those  subjects  are  studied  which  will 
be  of  real  service  in  the  later  life ;  if  such  subjects  be 
taught  without  digression  or  interruption;  if  a  thor- 
ough grounding  precede  the  detailed  instruction ;  if  all 
that  comes  later  be  based  upon  what  has  gone  before ; 
if  great  stress  be  laid  on  the  points  of  resemblance 
between  cognate  subjects;  if  the  studies  be  arranged 
with  reference  to  the  pupils'  present  mental  develop- 
ment, and  if  knowledge  be  fixed  in  the  memory  by 
constant  use. 

In  support  of  his  principle  of  thoroughness,  Come- 
nius  adduces  the  following  proofs  from  nature :  Noth- 
ing is  produced  by  nature  that  is  useless.  When  she 
forms  a  body,  she  omits  nothing  that  is  necessary. 
She  does  not  operate  on  anything  unless  it  possesses 
foundations,  and  she  strikes  her  roots  deep  and  devel- 
ops everything  from  them.  She  never  remains  at 
rest,  but  advances  continually;  never  begins  anything 
fresh  at  the  expense  of  work  already  begun,  but  pro- 
ceeds with  what  she  has  started  and  brings  it  to  com- 
pletion. She  knits  everything  together  in  continuous 
combination,  preserving  due  proportion  with  respect 
to  both  quality  and  quantity.  Through  constant  exer- 
cise she  becomes  strong  and  fruitful. 

Progress  is  less  a  question  of  strength  than  of  skill. 
Hitherto  little  has  been  accomplished  in  the  school- 
life  of  the  child,  because  no  set  landmarks  have  been 
set  up  as  goals  to  be  reached  by  the  pupils;  things 
naturally  associated  are  not  taught  together;  the  arts 
and  sciences  are  scarcely  ever  thought  of  as  an  encyclo- 


PHILOSOPHY  OF  EDUCATION  95 

psedic  whole ;  the  methods  employed  are  as  numerous 
and  diverse  as  the  schools  and  teachers ;  instruction  is 
individual  and  private,  and  not  public  and  general,  and 
books  are  selected  with  too  little  regard  for  the  value 
of  their  contents.  If  these  matters  could  be  reformed, 
there  is  no  doubt  in  the  mind  of  Comenius  that  the 
whole  circle  of  the  sciences  might  be  covered  during 
the  period  of  school  training.  Toward  the  solution  of 
this  problem  he  answers  the  following  questions :  — 

1.  How  can  a  single  teacher  instruct  a  large  num- 
ber of  children  at  the  same  time?  In  answer,  he 
maintains  that  it  is  not  only  possible  for  one  teacher 
to  instruct  several  hundred  children  (!)  at  once,  but 
that  it  is  essential  for  the  best  interests  of  both  the 
teacher  and  the  children  (! !).  The  larger  the  number 
of  pupils,  the  greater  will  be  the  teacher's  interest  in 
his  work;  and  the  keener  his  interest,  the  greater  the 
enthusiasm  of  his  pupils.  In  the  same  way,  to  the 
children,  the  presence  of  a  number  of  companions  will 
be  productive  not  only  of  utility,  but  also  of  enjoy- 
ment, since  they  will  mutually  stimulate  and  assist 
one  another.  For  children  of  this  age,  emulation  and 
rivalry  are  the  best  incentives  to  study.  The  reader 
will  observe  that  this  scheme  of  Comenius  contem- 
plates some  adaptation  of  the  system  of  pupil  teach- 
ing, and  that  it  interdicts  all  efforts  at  individual 
instruction. 

2.  How  far  is  it  possible  for  pupils  to  be  taught 
from  the  same  book?  It  is  an  undisputed  fact,  says 
Comenius,  that  too  many  facts  presented  to  the  mind 
at  the  same  time  distract  the  attention.' '  It  will,  there- 
fore, be  of  great  advantage  if  the  pupils  be  permitted 
to  use  no  books  except  those  which  have  been  expressly 


96  COMENIUS 

composed  for  the  class  in  which  they  are.  [Such  books 
should  contain  a  complete,  thorough,  and  accurate  epit- 
ome of  all  the  subjects  of  instruction.  yThey  should  give 
a  true  representation  of  the  entire  universe ;  should  be 
written  simply  and  clearly  —  preferably  in  the  form  of 
a  dialogue  /and  should  give  the  pupils  sufficient  assist- 
ance to  enable  them,  if  necessary,  to  pursue  their 
studies  without  the  help  of  a  mastery 

3.  How  is  it  possible  for  all  the  pupils  in  a  school 
to  do  the  same  thing  at  one  time?  This  may  be  accom- 
plished by  having  a  course  of  instruction  commence 
at  a  definite  time  of  each  year;  and  by  and  by  so 
dividing  the  course  of  instruction  that  each  year,  each 
month,  each  week,  each  day,  each  hour  may  have  a 
definite  appointed  task  for  it. 

4.  How  is  it  possible  to  teach  everything  according 
to  one  and  the  same  method?  That  there  is  only 
one  natural  method  has  already  been  satisfactorily 
demonstrated  (to  the  mind  of  Comenius),  and  the  uni- 
versal adoption  of  this  natural  method  will  be  as  great 
a  boon  to  pupils  as  a  plain  and  undeviating  road  is  to 
travellers. 

5.  How  can  many  things  be  explained  in  a  few 
words?  The  purpose  of  education  is  not  to  fill  the 
mind  with  a  dreary  waste  of  words  from  books. 
Rightly  says  Seneca  of  instruction:  "Its  administra- 
tion should  resemble  the  sowing  of  seed,  in  which 
stress  is  laid  not  on  the  quantity,  but  on  the  quality." 

6.  How  is  it  possible  to  do  two  or  three  things  by 
a  single  operation?  It  may  be  laid  down  as  a  general 
rule  that  each  subject  should  be  taught  in  combination 
with  those  which  are  correlative  to  it.  Reading,  pen- 
manship, spelling,  language,  and  nature  study  should 


PHILOSOPHY  OP  EDUCATION  97 

work  together  in  the  acquisition  and  expression  of 
ideas.  As  Professor  Hanus1  has  pointed  out, 
Comenius  clearly  foreshadowed  the  correlation  and 
coordination  of  school  studies  at  least  two  centuries 
before  Herbart.  Indeed,  he  went  so  far  as  to  urge  the  / 
correlation  of  school  instruction  with  the  plays  and/ 
games  of  children.  He  urged  that  children  be  given 
tools  and  allowed  to  imitate  the  different  handicrafts, 
by  playing  at  farming,  at  politics,  at  being  soldiers 
or  architects.  In  the  game  of  war  they  may  be  allowed 
to  take  the  part  of  field-marshals,  generals,  captains, 
and  standard-bearers.  In  that  of  politics  they  may  be 
kings,  ministers,  chancellors,  secretaries,  and  ambassa- 
dors, as  well  as  senators,  consuls,  and  lawyers;  since 
such  pleasantries  often  lead  to  serious  things.  Thus, 
maintains  Comenius,  would  be  fulfilled  Luther's  wish 
that  the  studies  of  the  young  at  school  might  be  so 
organized  that  the  pupils  would  take  as  much  pleasure 
in  them  as  playing  at  ball  all  day.  In  this  way,  the 
schools  might  become  a  real  prelude  to  the  more 
serious  duties  of  practical  life. 

Methods  of  Instruction 

A  correct  method  of  instruction  was  to  Comenius,  as 
has  already  been  pointed  out,  the  panacea  for  most  of 
the  ills  of  teaching.  He  made  reform  in  methodology 
the  starting  point  of  all  his  schemes  for  educational 
improvement.  In  the  Great  didactic  he  considers 
reform  in  methods  of  instructing  in  the  sciences,  arts, 
language,  morals,  and  religion. 

1  Permanent  influence  of  Comenius,  Educational  Review,  March, 
1892.    Vol.  Ill,  pp.  226-236. 

H 


98  COMENIUS 

1.  Science.  Knowledge  of  nature  or  science  requires 
objects  to  be  perceived  and  sufficient  attention  for  the 
perception  of  the  objects.  The  youth  who  would  com- 
prehend the  sciences  must  observe  four  rules :  (1)  he 
must  keep  the  eye  of  his  mind  pure ;  (2)  he  must  see 
that  the  proper  relationship  is  established  between 
the  eye  and  the  object ;  (3)  he  must  attend  to  the  object; 
(4)  he  must  proceed  from  one  object  to  another  in 
acceptance  with  a  suitable  method. 

'he  beginning  of  wisdom  in  the  sciences  consist*/ 
not  in  the  mere  learning  of  the  names  of  things,  but  in 
the  actual  perception  of  the  things  themselves.  It  is 
after  the  thing  has  been  grasped  by  the  senses  that 
language  should  fulfil  its  function  of  still  further 
explaining  it.^The  senses  are  the  trusty  servants  of 
the  memo^Tleading  to  the  permanent  retention  of 
the  knowledge  that  has  been  acquired.  Reasoning, 
also,  is  conditioned  and  mediated  by  the  experience 
gained  through  sense-perception,  /it  is  evident,  there- 
fore, that  if  we  wish  to  develop  a  true  love  and 
knowledge  of  science,  we  must  take  special  care  to 
see  that  everything  is  learned  by^actual  observation 
through  sense-perception.  This  should  be  the  golden 
rule  of  teachers :  Everything  should  as  far  as  possible 
be  placed  before  the  sensesT") 

When  the  objects  themTSStves  cannot  be  procured, 
representations  of  them  may  be  used;  models  may  be 
constructed  or  the  objects  may  be  represented  by 
means  of  engravings.  This  is  especially  needful  in 
such  studies  as  geography,  geometry,  botany,  zoology, 
physiology,  and  physics.  It  requires  both  labor  and 
expense  to  produce  models,  but  the  results  of  such  aids 
will  more  than  repay  the  efforts.     In  the  absence  of 


I 


PHILOSOPHY   OF  EDUCATION  99 

both  objects  and  models,  the  things  may  be  repre- 
sented by  means  of  pictures.1 

JZf^Arts.  "Theory/'  says  Vives,  "  is  easy  and  short, 
but  has  no  result  other  than  the  gratification  that  it 
affords.  Practice,  on  the  other  hand,  is  difficult  and 
prolix,  but  of  immense  utility."  Since  this  is  so, 
remarks  Cbmenius,  we  should  diligently  seek  out  a 
method  by  which  the  young  may  be  easily  led  to 
the  application  of  such  natural  forces  as  one  finds  in 
the  arts.  ^    ^&*^      —  / 

In  the  acquisition  of  an  art,  three  things  are  required : 
(1)  a/mode.Lwhich  the  pupil  may  examine  )and  then 
try  to- imitate;  (2)  material  on  which  the  new  form  is 
to  be  impressed;  and  (3)  instruments  by  the  aid  of 
which  the  work  is  accomplished.  After  these  have 
been  provided,  three  things  more  are  necessary  before 
an  art  can  be  learned  —  a  proper  use  of  the  materials, 
skilled  guidance,  and  frequent  practice. 

Progress  in  the  art  studies  is  primarily  through 
practice.  Let  the  pupils  learn  to  write  by  writing,  to 
talk  by  talking,  and  to  sing  by  singing.  Since  imita- 
tion is  such  an  important  factor  in  the  mastery  of  an 
art,  it  is  sheer  cruelty  to  try  to  force  a  pupil  to  do  that 
which  you  wish  done,  while  the  pupil  is  ignorant  of 
your  wishes.  The  use  of  instruments  should  be  shown 
in  practice,  and  not  by  words ;  by  example,  rather  than 
by  precept.  It  is  many  years  since  Quintilian  wrote, 
"  Through  precepts  the  way  is  long  and  difficult,  while 
through  examples  it  is  short  and  practicable."  But 
alas!  remarks  Comenius,  how  little  heed  the  schools 
pay  to  this  advice.     Man  is  essentially  an  imitative 

1  The  Orbis  pictus,  the  first  child's  picture-book,  was  subsequently 
prepared  to  meet  this  need. 


100  COMENIUS 

animal,  and  it  is  by  imitation  that  children  learn  to 
walk,  to  run,  to  talk,  and  to  play.1  Rules  are  like 
thorns  to  the  understanding,  since  to  grasp  them 
requires  a  degree  of  mental  development  not  common 
during  the  elementary  school  life  of  the  child. 

Comenius  would  have  the  first  attempts  at  imita- 
tion as  accurate  as  possible,  since  whatever  comes  first 
is  the  foundation  of  that  which  is  to  follow.  All 
haste  in  the  first  steps  should  be  avoided,  lest  we  pro- 
ceed to  the  advanced  work  before  the  elements  have 
been  mastered. 

Perfect  instruction  in  the  arts  is  based  on  both 
synthesis  and  analysis.  The  synthetic  steps  should 
generally  come  first,  since  we  should  commence  with 
what  is  easy,  and  our  own  efforts  are  always  easiest  to 
understand.  But  the  accurate  analysis  of  the  work  of 
others  must  not  be  neglected.  Finally,  it  must  be 
remembered  that  it  is  practice,  nothing  but  faithful 
practice,  that  makes  an  artist. 

3.  Language.  We  learn  languages,  not  merely  for 
the  erudition  and  wisdom  which  they  hold,  but  because 
languages  are  the  instruments  by  which  we  acquire 
knowledge  and  by  which  we  impart  our  knowledge  to 
others.  The  study  of  languages,  particularly  in  youth, 
should  be  joined  to  the  study  of  objects.  The  intelli- 
gence should  thus  be  exercised  on  matters  which  appeal 
to  the  interests  and  comprehension  of  children.  They 
waste  their  time  who  place  before  children  Cicero  and 
the  other  great  writers ;  for,  if  students  do  not  under- 
stand the  subject-matter,  how  can  they  master  the 
various  devices  for  expressing  it  forcibly  ?     The  time 

0 

1  See  in  this  connection  Tarde's  Laws  of  imitation.  New  York, 
1900. 


PHILOSOPHY  OF  EDUCATION  101 

would  be  more  usefully  spent  on  less  ambitious  efforts, 
so  correlated  that  the  languages  and  the  general  intelli- 
gence might  advance  together  step  by  step.  Nature 
makes  no  leaps,  neither  does  art,  since  art  imitates 
natur^f-""" 

^"iSach  language  should  be  learned  separately.  First 
of  all,  the  mother-tongue  should  be  learned ;  then  a 
modern  language — that  of  a  neighboring  nation; 
after  this,  Latin ;  and,  lastly,  Greek  and  Hebrew^)  The 
mother-tongue,  because  of  its  intimate  connection  with 
the  gradual  unfolding  of  the  objective  world  to  the 
senses,  will  require  from  eight  to  ten  years ;  a  modern 
language  may  be  mastered  in  one  year ;  Latin  in  two 
years ;  Greek  in  one  year ;  and  Hebrew  in  six  months. 

There  are  four  stages  in  the  study  of  a  language. 
The  first  is  the  age  of  babbling  infancy,  during  which 
time  language  is  indistinctly  spoken ;  the  second  is  the 
age  of  ripening  boyhood,  in  which  the  language  is 
correctly  spoken;  the  third  is  the  age  of  mature 
youth,  in  which  the  language  is  elegantly  spoken ;  and 
the  fourth  is  the  age  of  vigorous  manhood,  in  which 
the  language  is  forcibly  spoken. 

4.   Morals.     If  the  schools  are  to  become  forging 
places  of  humanity,  the  art  of  moral  instruction  must 
be  more  definitely  elaborated.     To  this  end  Comenius 
f orjjuiiates  the  following  pedagogic  rules :  — 
/All  the  virtues  may  be  implanted  in  men. 

Those  virtues  which  are  called  cardinal  virtues  — 
prudence,  temperance,  fortitude,  and  justice  —  should 
first  be  implanted^'' 

Prudence  may  be  acquired  through  good  instruction, 
and  by  learning  the  differences  which  exist  between 
things  and  the  relative  value  of  those  things.     Come- 


102  COMENIUS 

nius  expresses  agreement  with  Vives,  that  sound  judg-  ' 
ment  must  be  acquired  in  early  youth. 

Children  should  be  taught  to  observe  temperance  in  # 
eating,  drinking,  sleeping,  exercising,  and  playing. 

Fortitude  is  to  be  learned  by  the  suppression  of  ex- 
cessive desires  —  playing  at  the  wrong  time  or  beyond 
the  proper  time  —  and  by  avoiding  manifestations  of 
anger,  discontent,  and  impatience.  It  is  needful  for 
the  young  to  learn  fortitude  in  the  matter  of  frankness 
and  endurance  in  toil.  Children  must  be  taught  to 
work,  and  moral  education  must  preach  the  gospel  of 
work.  / 

-^*aefciyf^xamples  of  well-ordered  lives  in  the  persons 
of  parents,  teachers,  nurses,  and  schoolmates  must 
continually  be  set  before  the  children,  and  they  must 
be  carefully  guarded  against  bad  associations.  J 

5.  Religion,  /in  the  scheme  of  education  which 
Comenius  outlines  in  the  Great  didactic,  religion 
occupies  the  most  exalted  place  jvand  while  training 
in  morals  is  accessory  to  religion,  children  must  in 
addition  be  given  specific  instruction  in  piety.  For 
this  purpose  definite  methods  of  instruction  are  out- 
lined, i  Instruction  in  piety  must  be  of  such  a 
character  as  to  lead  children  to  follow  God,  by  giving 
themselves  completely  up  to  His  will,  by  acquiescing 
in  His  love,  and  by  singing  His  praise^Tl  The  child's 
heart  may  thus  be  joined  to  His  inlove  through 
meditation,  prayer,  and  examination.  Children  should 
early  be  habituated  to  the  outward  works  which  He 
commands,  that  they  may  be  trained  to  express  their 
faith  by  works.  At  first  they  will  not  understand  the 
true  nature  of  what  they  are  doing,  since  their  intelli- 
gence   is    not  yet   sufficiently   developed;   but  it  is 


PHILOSOPHY  OF  EDUCATION  103 

important  that  they  learn  to  do  what  subsequent 
experience  will  teach  them  to  be  right.1 
j  While  Comenius  was  not  willing  to  go  as  far  as  St. 
:ffugustine  and  the  early  church  fathers  in  the  matter 
of  abolishing  altogether  the  whole  body  of  pagan 
literature  from  the  school,  nevertheless,  he  thought 
that  the  best  interests  of  the  religious  education  of 
the  child  required  unusual  precaution  in  the  reading  of 
pagan  boo£s7]  He  reminds  his  readers  that  it  is  the 
business  o:T""Christian  schools  to  form  citizens,  not 
merely  for  this  world,  but  also  for  heaven,  and  that 
accordingly  children  should  read  mainly  those  authors 
who  are  well  acquainted  with  heavenly  as  well  as 
with  earthly  things. 

Types  of  Educational  Institutions 

The  modern  fourfold  division  of  education  into 
kindergarten,  elementary  schools,  secondary  schools, 
colleges  or  universities  was  clearly  foreshadowed  by 
Comenius  in  the  Great  didactic.  His  philosophy  of 
education  comprehends  a  school  of  infancy,  a  school 
of  the  mother-tongue,  a  Latin  school,  and  a  university. 
These  different  institutions,  he  notes,  are  not  merely 
to  deal  with  different  subjects,  but  they  are  to  treat 
the  same  subjects  in  different  ways,  giving  such 
instruction  in  all  of  them  as  will  make  true  men, 
true  Christians,  and  true  scholars,  although  grading 
the  instruction  throughout  to  the  age,  capabilities, 
and  previous  training  of  the  learners. 

1.   School    of  infancy.     Comenius    would    have    a 

1  For  a  more  detailed  account  of  Comenius'  views  on  the  religious 
education  of  children  see  the  following  chapter  on  the  School  oj 
infancy. 


104  COMENIUS 

mother's  school  in  every  home,  where  children  may 
be  given  such  training  as  will  fit  them  at  the  age  of 
six  years  to  begin  regular  studies  in  the  vernacular 
schooO  He  prepared  for  the  use  of  mothers  during 
this  period  a  detailed  outline,  which  he  published 
under  the  title,  Information  for  mothers,  or  School  of 
infancy.  An— analysis-  of  this  book  is  given -in  the 
following  chapter  on  the  earliest  training  of  the  child. 

2.  School  of  the  mother-tongue.  This  covers  the 
years  from  six  to  twelve,  and  includes  all  children  of 
both  sexes.  The  aim  of  this  school  is  to  teach  the 
young  such  things  as  will  be  of  practical  utility  in  later 
life  —  to  read  with  ease  both  printing  and  writing  in 
the  mother-tongue;  to  write  first  with  accuracy,  and 
finally  with  confidence  in  accordance  with  the  rules  of 
the  mother-tongue;  to  compute  numbers  as  far  as  may 
be  necessary  for  practical  purposes ;  to  measure  spaces, 
such  as  lengths,  breadths  and  distances ;  to  sing  well- 
known  melodies,  and  to  learn  by  heart  the  greater 
number  of  psalms  and  hymns  commonly  used  in  the 
country.  In  addition,  the  children  study  the  princi- 
ples of  morality,  the  general  history  of  the  world,  the 
geography  of  the  earth  and  principal  kingdoms  of 
Europe,  elementary  economics  and  politics,  and  the 
rudiments  of  the  mechanical  arts. 

The  six  years  of  the  school  of  the  mother-tongue 
are  graded  into  six  classes,  with  a  detailed  course 
of  study  for  each  class.  Provision  is  made  for  four 
lessons  daily,  two  in  the  forenoon  and  two  in  the 
afternoon.  The  remaining  hours  of  the  day  are  to  be 
spent  in  domestic  work  or  in  some  form  of  recreation. 
The  morning  hours  are  devoted  to  such  studies  as 
train  the  intellect;    the  afternoons  to  such  as   give 


PHILOSOPHY   OF   EDUCATION  105 

manual  skill.  No  new  work  is  to  be  introduced  in 
the  afternoon ;  but  the  pupils  may  review  and  discuss 
the  lessons  developed  during  the  morning  sessions. 
If  it  is  desired  that  a  foreign  language  be  introduced, 
it  should  not  be  begun  before  the  tenth  year. 

3.  The  Latin  school.  The  purpose  of  the  Latin 
school  is  to  give  a  more  thorough  and  comprehensive 
training  to  those  aspiring  to  callings  higher  than  the 
industrial  pursuits.  It  covers  the  years  from  twelve 
to  eighteen,  and  was  also  divided  into  six  classes, — 
the  grammar,  natural  philosophy,  mathematical,  ethics, 
dialectic,  and  rhetorical  classes.!  Since  Comenius, 
views  on  Latin  are  so  fully  set  fo^h  in  a  later  chapter 
on  language  teaching  and  the  Janua,  it  is  only  neces- 
sary here  to  recall  that  his  curriculum  for  the  Latin 
school  includes  a  wJ4&j3Jig©-e£^iilture  subjects.  The 
most  important  of  the  culture  studies  of  the  Latin 
school  is  history,  including  an  epitome  of  Biblical 
history,  natural  history,  the  history  of  arts,  inventions 
and  customs,  history  of  morals,  and  a  general  historical 
survey  of  the  leading  modern  nations  of  the  world. 

4.  University.  While  Comenius  frankly  admits 
that  his  experience  has  been  chiefly  limited  to  work 
in  elementary  and  secondary  schools,  still  he  sees  no 
reason  why  he  should  not  state  his  views  and  wishes 
with  regard  to  superior  instruction.  The  curriculum 
of  the  university  conceived  in  the  Great  didactic  is 
universal  in  character,  making  proyision  for  a  wide 
range  of  studies  in  every  branch  of  human  knowledge. 
The  university  must  possess  learned  and  able  prof es- ' 
sors  in  the  languages,  sciences,  and  >arts,  as  well  as  a 
library  of  well-selected  books  for  the  common  use  of 
all.     One  of  the  fundamental  aims  of  the  university 


106  COMENIUS 

is  to  widen  the  domain  of  knowledge  through  original 
investigation ;  in  consequence,  its  equipment  must  fit 
it  for  research  work. 

How  fully  these  schemes  have  been  realized,  the 
reader  may  appreciate  by  comparing  the  types  of  edu- 
cational institutions  of  the  United  States  and  Germany 
with  those  of  the  Great  didactic,  which  were  outlined 
by  Comenius  more  than  two  centuries  ago. 

School  Discipline 

Thfr^Gfreat  didactic  is  an  eloquent  protest  against 
J&esevere  and  inhuman  discipline  of  Comenius'  cay. 
Schools  which  abound  with  shrieks  and  blows,  he  says, 
are  not  well  disciplined.  Discipline  is  quite  another 
thing;  it  is  an  unfailing  method  by  which  we  may 
make  our  pupils  pupils  in  reality.  This  makes  it 
necessary  for  the  teacher  to  know  the  child,  the  being 
to  be  disciplined,  the  subjects  of  study  which  serve  ;is 
mental  stimulants,  and  the  relations  which  should 
exist  between  the  child  and  the  subjects  to  be  taugh^^ 
•^Discipline  must  be  free  from  personal  elements,  sucji 
as  anger  or  dislike,  and  should  be  exercised  with  frank- 
ness and  sincerity/'  Teachers  should  administer  pun- 
ishments just  -as  physicians  prescribe  medicines  — 
with  a  view  to  improving  the  condition  of  the  indi- 
vidual. Nor  should  severe  forms  of  discipline  be 
exercised  in  connection  with  studies  or  literary  exer- 
cises. Studies,  if  they  are  properly  taught,  form  in 
themselves  a  sufficient  attraction.  When  this  is  not 
the  case,  the  fault  lies  not  with  the  pupil,  but  with  the 
teacher ;  if  his  skill  is  unable  to  make  an  impression 
on  the  understanding,  his  blows  will  have  no  effect. 


PHILOSOPHY  OF  EDUCATION  107 

Indeed,  lie  is  more  likely  to  produce  a  distaste  for 
letters  than  a  love  for  them  by  the  application  of  force. 
Whenever,  therefore,  we  see  a  mind  that  is  diseased 
or  dislikes  study,  we  should  try  to  remove  its  disposi- 
tion by  gentle  remedies  j  but  on  no  account  should  we 
employ  violent  ones.  The  sun  gives  us  an  excellent  les- 
son on  this  point.  In  the  spring-time,  when  the  plants 
are  young  and  tender,  it  does  not  scorch  them,  but  warms 
and  invigorates  them ;  it  does  not  put  forth  its  full 
heat  until  they  are  full  grown.  The  gardener  proceeds 
on  the  same  principle,  and  does  not  apply  the  pruning 
knife  to  plants  that  are  immature.  In  the  same  way 
the  musician  does  not  strike  his  instrument  a  blow 
with  his  fist  or  throw  it  against  the  wall  because  it 
produces  a  discordant  sound ;  but  setting  to  work  on 
scientific  principles,  he  tunes  it  and  gets  it  into  order. 
Just  such  a  skilful  and  sympathetic  treatment  is 
necessary  to  instil  a  love  of  learning  into  the  minds 
of  pupils ;  and  any  other  procedure  will  only  convert 
their  idleness  into  antipathy  and  their  interest  into 
dowiwight  stupidity. 
//^Severe  forms  of  discipline  should  be  used  only  in 
cases  of  moral  delinquencies,  as  (1)  impiety  of  any 
kind,  such  as  blasphemy,  obscenity,  and  other  offences 
against  God's  law ;  (2)  stubbornness  and  premeditated 
misbehavior,  such  as  disobeying  orders  and  conscious 
neglect  of  duty  ;  and  (3)  pride,  disdain,  envy,  and  idle- 
ness. Offences  of  the  first  kind  are  an  insult  against 
the  majesty  of  God ;  those  of  the  second  kind  under- 
mine the  foundations  of  virtue ;  and  those  of  the  third 
prevent  any  rapid  progress  in  studie*sT^  An  offence 
against  God  is  a  crime,  and  should  be*expiated  by  an 
extremely  severe  punishment ;  an  offence  against  man 


108  COMENIUS 

is  iniquitous,  and  should  be  promptly  corrected ;  but 
an  offence  against  Priscian  is  a  stain  that  may  be 
wiped  out  by  the  sponge  of  blame.  In  a  word,  the 
object  of  discipline  should  be  to  stir  the  pupils  to 
revere  God,  to  assist  their  fellows,  and  to  perform  the 
labors  and  duties  of  life  with  alacrity. 


/; 


CHAPTER  VII 

EARLIEST  EDUCATION  OF  THE  CHILD 

School  of  infancy  —  Circumstances  under  which  written  —  View 
of  childhood  —  Conception  of  infant  education.  Physical  train- 
ing—  Care  of  the  body  — The  child's  natural  nurse  — Foods  — 
Sleep  —  Play  and  exercise.  Mental  training  —  Studies  which  fur- 
nish the  materials  of  thought,  and  studies  which  furnish  the 
symbols  of  thought  —  Nature  study  —  Geography  —  History  — 
Household  economy  —  Stories  and  fables  —  Principle  of  activity 

—  Drawing  —  Arithmetic  —  Geometry  —  Music  —  Language  — 
Poetry.    Moral  and  religious  training  —  Examples  —  Instruction 

—  Discipline  —  Some  virtues  to  be  taught  —  Character  of  formal 
religious  instruction. 

The  School  of  Infancy 

Plato,  Quintilian,  Plutarch,  and  other  writers  on 
education  have  discussed  the  earliest  training  of  the 
child,  but  none  of  these  early  writers  have  compre- 
hended the  significance  of  infancy  with  any  such  peda- 
gogic insight  as  Comenius ;  and  his  School  of  infancy 
has  taken  a  permanent  place  among  the  classics  which 
deal  with  the  period  of  childhood.  It  was  written 
during  the  years  1628  to  1630,  when  he  was  in  charge 
of  the  Moravian  school  at  Lissa.  A  German  edition 
(it  was  originally  written  in  the  Sclavic  tongue)  ap- 
peared at  Lissa  in  1633,  a  second  edition  at  Leipzig 
in  1634,  and  a  third  German  edition  at  Nuremberg 
in  1636.     Subsequently  Polish,  Bohemian,  and  Latin 

109 


110  COMENIUS 

translations  appeared;  and  Joseph  Miiller,1  a  most 
painstaking  Comenius  bibliographer,  mentions  an  Eng- 
lish translation  in  1641.  I  have  found  no  other  refer- 
ence to  an  English  translation  so  early.  As  already 
noted,  however,  Comenius  was  well  and  favorably 
known  to  Milton,  Hartlib,  and  others  high  in  educa- 
tional authority  in  England ;  and  the  fact  that  most 
of  his  other  writings  were  translated  there  gives  cred- 
ence to  Mr.  Muller's  statement.  In  the  year  1858, 
Mr.  Daniel  Benham 2  published  in  London  an  English 
translation,  to  which  he  prefixed  a  well-written  account 
of  the  life  of  Comenius.  But  his  translation  was  soon 
out  of  print ;  and  this  excellent  treatise  in  conse- 
quence remained  inaccessible  to  English  readers  until 
the  appearance  of  my  own  translation.  (Boston,  1896. 
Republished  in  London,  1897.) 

The  School  of  infancy  was  written  as  a  guide  for 
mothers  during  the  first  six  years  of  the  child's  life, 
and  was  dedicated  to  "  pious  Christian  parents,  guar- 
dians, teachers,  and  all  upon  whom  the  charge  of  chil- 
dren is  incumbent."  Since  the  education  of  the  child 
must  begin  at  its  birth,  mothers  must  assume  the 
teacher's  role ;  and  the  mothers  of  the  seventeenth  cen- 
tury, according  to  Comenius,  were  altogether  unfitted 
because  of  lack  of  training  to  undertake  this  high  and 
holy  mission.  Accordingly,  the  School  of  infancy  out- 
lines definite  instructions  for  mothers. 

Comenius  was  too  deeply  grounded  in  the  religious 


1  Zur  Biickerkunde  des  Comenius.  Monatshefte  der  Comenius- 
Gesellschaft.    1802.    Vol.  I.,  pp.  19-53. 

2  School  of  infancy :  an  essay  on  the  education  of  youth  during 
the  first  six  years,  by  John  Amos  Comenius.  To  which  is  prefixed 
a  sketch  of  the  life  of  the  author.    London,  1858.    pp.  168  +  75. 


EARLIEST   EDUCATION  OF   THE   CHILD         111 

dogmas  of  his  day  to  abandon  altogether  the  doctrine 
of  original  sin,  then  so  generally  held ;  but  he  main- 
tained that  suitable  early  training  would  overcome 
most  of  the  original  perversity  in  the  human  heart. 
No  one,  he  urges,  should  be  a  mother  or  a  teacher  who 
does  not  hold  unbounded  faith  in  the  possibilities  of 
childhood.  The  child  is  not  to  be  regarded  with  refer- 
ence to  its  youthful  disabilities,  but  rather  with  a 
view  to  the  purposes  of  the  Divine  mind,  as  Frobel 
would  say,  regard  the  child  as  a  pledge  of  the  pres- 
ence, goodness,  and  love  of  God.  What  higher  tribute 
to  childhood  than  this :  "  The  mother  that  has  under 
her  care  the  training  of  a  little  child  possesses  a  garden 
in  which  celestial  plantlets  are  sown,  watered,  bloom, 
and  flourish.  How  inexpressibly  blessed  is  a  mother 
in  such  a  paradise ! "  With  Quintilian  he  asks :  "  Has 
a  son  been  born  to  you  ?  From  the  first,  conceive  only 
the  highest  hopes  for  him." 

The  purpose  in  the  education  of  the  child  is  three- 
fold :  (1)  faith  and  piety,  (2)  uprightness  in  respect  to 
morals,  and  (3)  knowledge  of  languages  and  arts ;  and 
this  order  must  not  be  inverted.  Parents,  therefore, 
do  not  fully  perform  their  duty  when  they  merely 
teach  their  offspring  to  eat,  drink,  walk,  and  talk. 
These  things  are  merely  subservient  to  the  body, 
which  is  not  the  man,  but  his  tabernacle  only;  the 
rational  soul  dwells  within,  and  rightly  claims  greater 
care  than  its  outward  tenement. 

In  the  education  of  the  child,  care  especially  for 
the  soul,  which  is  the  highest  part  of  its  nature ;  and 
next,  attend  to  the  body,  that  it  may  be  made  a  fit 
and  worthy  habitation  for  the  soul.  Aim  to  train  the 
child  to  a  clear  and  true  knowledge  of  God  and  all  his 


112  COMENIUS 

wonderful  works,  and  a  knowledge  of  himself,  so  that 
he  may  wisely  and  prudently  regulate  his  actions. 

It  must  be  borne  in  mind,  however,  that  to  properly 
train  children  requires  clear  insight  and  assiduous 
labor.  It  is  to  be  regretted  that  so  many  parents  are 
too  incompetent  to  instruct  their  children  and  that 
others,  by  reason  of  the  performance  of  family  and 
social  duties,  are  unable  to  discharge  this  high  and 
holy  mission.  All  such,  of  course,  must  hand  their 
children  over  to  some  one  else  to  instruct.  But  they 
should  intrust  their  little  ones  to  the  care  and  training 
of  such  instructors  only  who  will  make  the  act  of 
learning  pleasing  and  agreeable  —  a  mere  amusement 
and  mental  delight. 

Schools  should  be  retreats  of  ease,  places  of  literary 
amusement,  and  not  houses  of  torture.  A  musician 
does  not  dash  his  instrument  against  the  wall,  or  give 
it  blows  and  cuffs  because  he  cannot  draw  music  from 
it,  but  continues  to  apply  his  skill  until  he  is  able  to 
extract  a  melody.  So  by  your  skill  you  should  bring 
the  mind  of  the  young  child  into  harmony  with  his 
studies. 

The  first  step  in  the  education  of  the  child  is  the 
most  important.  Every  one  knows  that  whatever 
form  the  branches  of  an  old  tree  may  have,  that  they 
must  necessarily  have  been  so  formed  from  the  first 
growth.  The  animal  born  blind,  lame,  defective,  or 
deformed  remains  so.  The  training  of  the  child's 
body,  mind,  and  soul  should,  therefore,  be  a  matter 
of  earnest  thought  from  the  very  first. 

While  it  is  possible  for  God  to  completely  transform 
an  inveterately  bad  man,  yet,  in  the  regular  course  of 
nature,  it  scarcely  ever  happens  otherwise  than  that 


EARLIEST  EDUCATION   OF   THE    CHILD         113 

as  a  being  is  formed  during  the  early  stages  of  devel- 
opment, so  it  matures,  and  so  it  remains.  Whatever 
seed  is  sown  in  youth,  such  fruit  is  reaped  in  old  age. 

Nor  is  it  wise  to  delay  such  training  until  the  child 
is  old  enough  to  be  instructed  in  a  school,  since  ten- 
dencies are  acquired  which  are  difficult  to  overcome. 
It  is  impossible  to  make  a  tree  straight  that  has  grown 
crooked,  or  to  produce  an  orchard  from  a  forest  every- 
where surrounded  with  briers  and  thorns.  This  makes 
it  necessary  for  parents  to  know  something  about  the 
management  of  children,  that  they  may  be  able  to 
lay  the  foundations  upon  which  the  teachers  are  to 
build  when  the  child  enters  school  at  the  age  of  six 
years. 

Great  care  must  be  exercised  with  reference  to  the 
methods  adopted  with  children  so  young.  The  instruc- 
tion need  not  be  apportioned  to  the  same  degree  that 
it  is  apportioned  in  schools,  since  at  this  early  age  all 
children  are  not  endowed  with  equal  ability,  some 
beginning  to  speak  in  the  first  year,  some  in  the 
second,  and  some  not  until  the  third  year. 

Physical  Training 

The  first  care  of  the  mother  must  be  for  #ie  health 
of  her  child,  since  bodily  vigor  so  largely  conditions 
normal  mental  development.  "A  certain  author," 
says  Comenius,  "  advises  that  parents  ought '  to  pray 
for  a  sound  mind  in  a  sound  body/  but  they  ought  to 
labor  as  well  as  pray."  Since  the  early  care  of  the 
child  devolves  largely  on  the  mother,  Comenius  coun- 
sels women  with  reference  to  the  hygiene  of  childhood. 
Prenatal  conditions  are  no  less  important  than  post- 


114  COMENIUS 

natal;  and  prospective  mothers  should  observe  tem- 
perance in  diet,  avoid  violent  movements,  control  the 
emotions,  and  indulge  in  no  excessive  sleep  or  indolence. 

For  good  and  sufficient  reasons  the  mother  should 
nurse  her  own  child.  "How  grievous,  how  hurtful, 
how  reprehensible,"  he  exclaims,  "is  the  conduct  of 
some  mothers,  especially  among  the  upper  classes,  who, 
feeling  it  irksome  to  nourish  their  own  offspring,  dele- 
gate the  duty  to  other  women."  This  cruel  alienation 
of  mothers  from  their  children,  he  maintains,  is  the 
greatest  obstacle  to  the  early  training  of  the  child. 
Such  conduct  is  clearly  opposed  to  nature :  the  wolf 
and  bear,  the  lion  and  panther,  nourish  their  offspring 
with  their  own  milk;  and  shall  the  mothers  of  the 
human  race  be  less  affectionate  than  the  wild  beasts  ? 
Moreover,  it  contributes  to  the  health  of  the  child  to 
be  nourished  by  its  natural  mother. 

Comenius  has  some  sound  advice  for  mothers  on  the 
kinds  of  food  for  young  children.  At  the  first  it  must 
as  nearly  as  possible  approximate  to  their  natural  ali- 
ment; it  must  be  soft,  sweet,  and  easily  digestible. 
Milk  is  an  excellent  food;  and  after  milk,  bread, 
butter,  and  vegetables.  All  highly  seasoned  foods  are 
to  be  avoided ;  and  Comenius  urges  mothers  to  regard 
medicines  as  they  would  poisons,  and  avoid  them 
altogether.  Children  accustomed  to  medicine  from 
their  earliest  years  are  certain  to  become  "feeble, 
sickly,  infirm,  pale-faced,  imbecile,  cancerous." 

Children  during  the  earliest  years  require  an  abun- 
dance of  sleep,  fresh  air,  and  exercise.  They  need  not 
only  to  be  exercised,  but  their  exercises  should  be  in 
the  nature  of  amusements.  "A  joyful  mind,"  he 
remarks,  "is  half  health,  and  the  joy  of  the  heart  is 


EARLIEST  EDUCATION  OF  THE  CHILD        115 

the  very  life-spring  of  the  child."  These  exercises  for 
the  amusement  of  the  child  may  provide  for  the  pleas- 
ure of  its  eyes,  ears,  and  other  senses,  as  well  as  con- 
tribute to  the  vigor  of  its  body  and  mind.  Play  not 
only  conduces  to  the  health  of  the  child,  but  it  lays  the 
basis  for  later  development.1 

Mental  Training 

For  the  mental  training  of  the  child  during  its  first 
six  years  Comenius  has  outlined  two  classes  of  studies : 
(1)  those  which  furnish  the  materials  of  thought,  such 
as  nature  study,  geography,  and  household  economy, 
and  (2)  those  which  furnish  the  symbols  of  thought, 
such  as  drawing,  writing,  and  language.  This  group- 
ing of  form  and  content  studies,  it  should  be  noted, 
has  been  followed  by  the  disciples  of  Herbart  in  their 
schemes  of  classification. 

The  first  and  second  years  of  the  child's  life  must 
be  entirely  given  over  to  the  development  of  organic 
functions ;  but,  by  the  beginning  of  the  third  year,  the 
child  has  acquired  a  vocabulary,  and  he  should  be 
taught  to  comprehend  the  meaning  of  the  words  he 
uses.  This  early  knowledge  should  be  of  natural 
things  —  plants,  flowers,  trees,  sand,  clay,  the  cow, 
horse,  and  dog.  He  may  be  taught  to  comprehend 
some  of  the  more  important  observable  characters  of 
these  objects  and  to  know  their  uses. 

Special  exercises  should  be  provided  for  the  training 

1  To  except  Locke  no  reformer  before  Comenius'  time  has  set 
forth  the  need  of  physical  training  with  anything  like  the  clearness 
and  fulness  of  the  School  of  infancy.  See  Some  thoughts  concern- 
ing education  by  John  Locke.  Edited  with  introduction  and  notes 
by  R.  H.  Quick.    London,  1884.    pp.  240. 


116  COMENIUS 

of  the  eye ;  excessive  lights  must  be  avoided,  and  also 
overstraining.  Children  may  be  moderately  intro- 
duced to  objects  of  color,  and  thus  taught  to  enjoy  the 
beauty  of  the  heavens,  trees,  flowers,  and  running 
water.  In  the  fourth  and  following  years  they  should 
be  taken  into  fields  and  along  the  rivers,  and  trained  to 
observe  plants,  animals,  running  water,  and  the  turning 
of  windmills.  In  both  nature  study  and  geography 
Comenius  anticipated  the  Heimatskunde  of  Pesta- 
lozzi. 

Children  should  also  during  their  first  six  years  be 
taught  to  know  the  heavens,  and  to  distinguish  between 
sun,  moon,  and  stars ;  to  understand  that  the  sun  and 
moon  rise  and  set;  to  recognize  that  the  days  are 
shortest  in  winter  and  longest  in  summer ;  to  distin- 
guish time  —  morning,  noonday,  evening,  and  when  to 
eat,  sleep,  and  pray. 

The  study  of  geography  should  be  begun  at  the 
cradle,  and  the  location,  distance,  and  direction  of  the 
nursery,  kitchen,  bed-chamber,  and  orchard  should 
early  be  learned.  They  should  have  out-door  lessons 
in  geography,  and  be  taught  to  find  their  way  through 
the  streets,  to  the  market-place,  and  to  the  homes  of 
their  friends  and  relatives.  In  the  fifth  year  they 
should  study  a  city,  field,  orchard,  forest,  hill,  and 
river,  and  fix  what  they  learn  about  these  things  in 
the  memory. 

The  early  historic  instruction  should  begin  with  a 
development  of  the  sense  of  time  —  the  working  days 
and  the  Sabbath  days,  when  to  attend  and  engage  in 
divine  services,  the  occurrence  of  such  solemn  festivals 
as  Christmas,  Easter,  and  Whitsuntide,  and  the  sig- 
nificance of  these  holy  occasions.     The  child  may  also 


EARLIEST  EDUCATION  OF  THE  CHILD        117 

be  trained  to  recall  where  he  was  and  what  he  did 
yesterday,  the  day  before,  a  week  ago. 

Household  economy  should  receive  important  in- 
struction during  the  first  six  years  of  the  child's  life. 
He  must  be  trained  to  know  the  relation  which  he  is 
to  sustain  to  his  father  and  mother,  and  to  obey  each ; 
where  to  place  and  how  to  care  for  his  clothes ;  the 
use  of  toys  and  playthings ;  the  economy  of  the  home, 
and  his  place  in  that  economy. 

Comenius  also  commends  stories  and  fables,  particu- 
larly those  about  animals  which  contain  some  moral 
principle.  "  Stories,"  says  Comenius,  "  greatly  sharpen 
the  innate  capacity  of  children."  Ingeniously  con- 
structed stories  serve  a  twofold  purpose  in  the  early 
development  of  the  child:  they  occupy  their  minds, 
and  they  instil  knowledge  which  will  afterward  be  of 
use. 

The  greatest  service  which  parents  can  render  their 
children  during  these  early  years  is  to  encourage  play. 
This  must  not  be  left  to  chance,  but  must  be  provided 
for ;  and  children  need,  most  of  all,  to  play  with  other 
children  near  their  own  age.  In  such  social  plays  with 
their  companions  there  is  neither  the  assumption  of 
authority  nor  the  dread  of  fear,  but  the  free  inter- 
course which  calls  forth  all  their  powers  of  invention, 
sharpens  their  wits,  and  cultivates  their  manners  and 
habits. 

In  his  discussion  of  the  form  studies,  such  as  draw- 
ing, writing,  and  language,  Comenius  remarks  that 
nothing  delights  children  more  than  to  be  doing  some- 
thing. Youthful  vigor  will  not  long  permit  them  to 
be  at  rest ;  and  this  spontaneous  activity  requires  wise 
regulation,  in  order  that  children  may  acquire  the  habit 


118  COMENIUS 

of  doing  things  that  they  will  be  required  to  do  later.1 
This  is  the  time  when  children  are  most  imaginative 
and  imitative ;  they  delight  in  doing  the  things  that 
they  have  seen  done  by  their  elders.  All  these  imita- 
tive exercises  give  health  to  their  bodies,  agility  to 
their  movements,  and  vigor  to  their  muscles. 

At  this  period  children  delight  in  construction ;  sup- 
ply them  with  material  with  which  they  may  exercise 
whatever  architectural  genius  they  may  have  —  clay, 
wood,  blocks,  and  stones,  with  which  to  construct 
houses,  walls,  etc.  They  should  also  have  toy  car- 
riages, houses,  mills,  plows,  swords,  and  knives. 
Children  delight  in  activity,  and  parents  should  realize 
that  restraint  is  alike  harmful  to  the  development  of 
the  mind  and  the  body. 

After  children  have  been  taught  to  walk,  run,  jump, 
roll  hoop,  throw  balls,  and  to  construct  with  blocks  and 
clay,  supply  them  with  chalk  or  charcoal,  and  allow 
them  to  draw  according  as  their  inclination  may  be 
excited.  In  arithmetic  Comenius  recognizes  the  diffi- 
culty in  leading  children  to  see  quantitative  relations. 
By  the  fourth  year,  however,  he  thinks  that  they  may 
be  taught  to  count  to  ten  and  to  note  resemblances 
and  differences  in  quantity.  To  proceed  further  than 
this  would  be  unprofitable,  nay,  hurtful,  he  says,  since 
nothing  is  so  difficult  to  fix  in  the  mind  of  the  young 
child  as  numbers.  Comenius,  it  would  seem,  valued 
the  study  of  arithmetic  much  less  highly  than  modern 
educators.  He  thought  that  some  geometry  might  be 
taught  during  these  early  years ;  children  may  easily 

1  Note  the  harmony  of  this  conception  of  play  with  the  modern 
theories  of  Professor  Karl  Groos  in  his  Play  of  animals  (New  York, 
1898,  pp.  341)  and  in  his  Spiele  der  Menschen  (Jena,  1899,  pp.  538). 


EARLIEST  EDUCATION  OF   THE   CHILD        119 

be  trained  to  perceive  the  common  geometric  forms ; 
and  the  measurements  and  comparisons  involved  in 
the  perception  of  such  forms  train  the  understanding 
of  the  child. 

Music  is  instinctive  and  natural  to  the  child.  Com- 
plaints and  wailings  are  his  first  lessons  in  music.  It 
is  impossible  to  restrain  such  complaints  and  wails ; 
and  even  if  it  were  possible,  it  would  not  be  expedient, 
since  all  such  vocalizations  exercise  the  muscles  in- 
volved in  the  production  of  speech,  develop  the  chest, 
and  contribute  to  the  child's  general  health.  Children 
should  hear  music  in  their  earliest  infancy,  that  their 
ears  and  minds  may  be  soothed  by  concord  and  har- 
mony. He  even  countenances  the  banging  and  rattling 
noises  which  children  are  fond  of  making,  on  the 
ground  that  such  noises  represent  legitimate  steps  in 
the  development  of  the  child's  musical  sense.  Give 
them  horns,  whistles,  drums,  and  rattles,  and  allow 
them  to  acquire  perceptions  of  rhythm  and  melody. 

In  the  matter  of  instruction  in  language,  Comenius 
had  one  fundamental  principle  —  that  ideas  of  things 
must  accompany  or  precede  the  words  which  symbol- 
ized the  things.  In  consequence,  word  training,  as 
such,  had  no  place  in  his  schemes  of  education.  When 
children  begin  to  talk,  great  care  must  be  exercised  that 
they  articulate  distinctly  and  correctly.  The  start 
must  always  be  in  the  mother-tongue.  Comenius,  it 
will  be  recalled,  was  at  variance  with  his  contempora- 
ries in  deferring  instruction  in  Latin  until  the  child 
was  twelve  years  old.  During  these  early  years  he 
believes  that  poetry  —  and  especially  jingles  and 
nursery  rhymes — may  be  used  with  great  profit  in 
aiding  children  to  acquire  language.     They  may  not 


120  COMENIUS 

always  understand  the  rhymes,  but  they  are  certain  to 
be  pleased  much  more  by  the  rhythm  of  verse  than  by 
prose. 

Moral  and  Beligious  Training 

However  much  Comenius  may  have  valued  mental 
and  physical  training,  the  fundamental  aim  and  end 
of  all  education  he  regarded  as  moral  and  religious. 
The  agencies  which  he  would  have  employed  in  the 
early  moral  training  of  the  child  are  (1)  a  perpetual 
example  of  virtuous  conduct ;  (2)  properly  timed  and 
prudent  instruction  and  exercise;  and  (3)  well-regulated 
discipline.  Children  are  exceptionally  imitative,  in 
consequence  of  which  there  should  be  great  circum- 
spection in  the  home  in  matters  of  temperance,  clean- 
liness, neatness,  truthfulness,  complaisance,  and  respect 
for  superiors.  While  lengthened  discourses  and 
admonitions  are  not  expedient,  prudent  instruction 
may  often  accompany  examples  with  profit. 

As  to  discipline,  Comenius  thinks  that  occasionally 
there  is  need  of  chastisement  in  order  that  children 
may  attend  to  examples  of  virtue  and  admonition. 
When  other  means  of  discipline  have  been  ineffectual, 
the  rod  may  be  used,  but  only  for  offences  against 
morals  —  never  for  stupidity.  Comenius  gives  the 
impression  that  children  may  be  whipped  into  being 
good.  The  influence  of  the  ill-timed  advice  of  Solomon 
is  clearly  apparent  here. 

Temperance  and  frugality,  he  thinks,  claim  the 
first  place  in  the  moral  training  of  the  child,  inasmuch 
as  they  are  the  foundations  of  health  and  life,  and  the 
mother  of  all  the  virtues.  Neatness  and  cleanliness 
should  be  exacted  from  the  first  j  so  should  respect  of 


EARLIEST  EDUCATION  OF  THE   CHILD        121 

superiors  and  elders.  Bold  and  forward  children  are 
not  generally  loved.  Obedience,  like  the  plant,  does 
not  spring  up  spontaneously,  but  requires  years  of 
patient  care  and  training  to  develop  into  a  thing  of 
beauty.  Truthfulness  likewise  is  no  less  important; 
so  also  justice,  respect  for  the  rights  of  others,  be- 
nevolence, patience,  and  civility. 

And  -most  important  of  the  virtues  to  be  acquired 
by  the  young  child  is  industry.  Nothing  hinders 
moral  growth  more  than  indolence.  Comenius  agrees 
with  the  church  fathers  that  Satan's  best  allies  are 
the  idle.  Children  must  not  be  idle.  Teach  them  to 
play,  to  make  things,  to  do  things,  to  be  helpful  to 
themselves  and  useful  to  others. 

Comenius  exaggerated  the  importance  of  religious 
training  during  the  child's  earliest  years.  While 
recognizing  that  reasoning  was  necessary  for  the  best 
results  in  religious  instruction,  he  nevertheless  over- 
burdens the  memory  with  formal  religious  instructions. 
Before  the  child  is  six  years  old  he  is  to  be  taught  the 
Lord's  Prayer,  the  Apostles'  Creed,  the  Confession  of 
Faith,  the  Ten  Commandments,  and  numerous  hymns. 

In  spite  of  his  unreasonable  demands  on  the  memory, 
most  of  Comenius'  counsels  to  mothers  on  the  religious 
instruction  of  their  little  ones  are  sane  and  helpful. 
The  spirit  of  the  parents,  he  rightly  suggests,  is  all 
important  in  religious  instruction;  outward  piety  is 
not  enough.  The  religious  nature  unfolds  slowly,  and 
unusual  patience  and  foresight  are  required  in  its 
nurture  and  development. 

All  this  training  —  physical,  mental,  moral,  and 
religious  —  has  been  preliminary  to  the  formal  training 
in  the  school,  which  is  to  begin  in  the  sixth  or  seventh 


122  COMENIUS 

year  of  the  child's  life.  The  transition  step  from  the 
home  to  the  school  is  now  to  be  made ;  for  just  "  as 
little  plants  after  they  have  grown  up  from  their  seed 
are  transplanted  into  orchards,  for  their  more  success- 
ful growth,  so  it  is  expedient  that  children,  cherished 
and  nurtured  in  the  home,  having  acquired  strength  of 
mind  and  body,  should  be  delivered  to  the  care  of 
teachers." 


CHAPTER  VIII 

STUDY  OF  LANGUAGE 

Dominance  of  Latin  in  the  seventeenth  century  —  Methods  of  study 
characterized  by  Comenius.  The  Janua  —  Purpose  and  plan  — 
Its  success.  Atrium  and  Vestibulum  —  Their  relation  to  the 
Janua.  The  Orbis  pictus  —  How  conceived  —  Its  popularity  — 
Use  of  pictures.  Methodus  novissima  —  Principles  of  language 
teaching  —  Function  of  examples  —  Place  of  oral  and  written 
language  in  education. 

Recalling  that  Latin  occupied  such  an  exalted  place 
in  the  schools  of  Comenius'  day,  it  is  not  at  all  sur- 
prising that  he  gave  so  much  attention  to  the  study  of 
language.  Latin  absorbed  practically  all  the  energies 
of  the  pupils,  and  with  results  that  were  far  from 
satisfactory.  A  historian  of  the  period  says,  "  Boys 
and  teachers  were  alike  unhappy;  great  severity  of 
discipline  was  practised,  and  after  all  was  done,  and 
all  the  years  of  youth  had  been  spent  in  the  study 
mainly  of  the  Latin,  the  results  were  contemptible." 

The  study  of  Latin  is  thus  characterized  by  Come- 
nius: 

1.  The  Latin  language  is  taught  abstractly  with- 
out a  knowledge  of  the  things  which  the  words  denote. 
Words  should  be  learned  in  connection  with  things 
already  known ;  it  is  false  to  conclude  that,  because 
children  know  how  to  utter  words,  they  therefore  under- 
stand them. 

2.  The  second  evil  in  the  study  of  language  is  driv- 

123 


124  COMENIUS 

ing  children  into  the  manifold  intricacies  of  grammar 
from  the  very  first.  It  is  a  blunder  to  plunge  them 
into  the  formal  statements  of  grammar  on  their  first 
beginning  Latin.  To  make  matters  worse,  the  Latin 
grammar  is  written  in  Latin.  How  should  we  adults 
like  it,  if,  in  the  study  of  Arabic,  we  had  a  grammar 
written  in  the  Arabic  first  put  into  our  hands  ? 

3.  The  third  evil  in  the  study  of  language  is  the 
practice  of  compelling  children  to  make  impossible 
leaps  instead  of  carrying  them  forward  step  by  step. 
We  introduce  them  from  the  grammar  into  Virgil  and 
Cicero.  The  sublimity  of  poetic  style  is  beyond  the 
conception  of  boys,  and  the  subject-matter  of  Cicero's 
epistles  not  easy  for  grown  men.  It  will  be  said  that 
the  object  is  to  place  before  children  a  perfect  model 
to  which  they  may  attain.  It  is  right  to  aim  at  a 
perfect  model,  when  the  aim  is  practicable,  and  if  we 
proceed  gradually  to  the  highest.  But  larger  things 
are  with  advantage  postponed  to  lesser  things;  and 
lesser  things,  if  accommodated  to  the  age  of  the 
learners,  yield  greater  fruits  than  large  things.  If 
Cicero  himself  were  to  enter  our  schools  and  find  boys 
engaged  with  his  works,  Comenius  believes  that  he 
would  be  either  amused  or  indignant. 

Professor  Laurie  remarks  that  "when  we  bear  in 
mind  the  construction  of  the  Latin  grammars  then  in 
use,  —  that  of  Alvarus,  for  example,  having  five  him-  J 
dred  rules  and  as  many  exceptions,  —  we  cannot  be  / 
surprised  at  the  nnanimous  condemnation  of  the  then 
current  methods  of  teaching,  and  the  almost  universal 
lamentation  over  the  wasted  years  of  youth." 


STUDY  OF  LANGUAGE  125 

The  Janua 

We  are  now  to  see  how  Comenius  proposed  to  reform 
these  evils.  "  I  planned  a  book,"  he  says,  "  in  which 
all  things,  the  properties  of  things,  and  the  actions 
and  passions  of  things  should  be  presented,  and  to 
each  should  be  assigned  its  proper  work,  believing 
that  in  one  and  the  same  book  the  whole  connected 
series  of  things  might  be  surveyed  historically,  and 
the  whole  fabric  of  things  and  words  reduced  to  one 
continuous  context.  On  mentioning  my  purpose  to 
some  friends,  one  of  them  directed  my  attention  to 
the  Jesuit  father's  Janua  linguarum,  and  gave  me  a 
copy.  I  leaped  for  joy;  but  on  examination,  I  found 
that  it  did  not  fulfil  my  plan." 

The  Janua  referred  to  by  Comenius  was  that  written 
by  William  Bateus,  an  Irish  Jesuit,  who  was  spiritual 
father  at  Salamanca,  Spain.  His  Janua  appeared  in 
Spain  prior  to  1605.  It  contained  twelve  hundred 
short  Latin  sentences  with  accompanying  Spanish 
translations.  The  sentences  were  made  up  of  common 
Latin  root-words,  and  no  word  was  repeated.  In  1615 
an  English-Latin  edition  appeared ;  and  subsequently 
editions  in  French,  German,  and  Italian.  The  object 
of  Bateus  in  the  publication  of  his  Janua  was  to  pro- 
mote the  spread  of  Christianity  by  enabling  the  heathen 
the  more  easily  to  learn  to  read  the  Latin. 

It  will  thus  appear  that  the  plan  of  the  Janua  lingu- 
arum  reserata  of  Comenius,  the  book  that  was  destined 
to  make  his  name  known  throughout  the  world,  was 
not  wholly  original  with  the  Moravian  reformer.  The 
name  and  to  some  extent  the  plan  of  the  book  had 
been  suggested  by  the  publication  of  the  Jesuit. 


126  COMENIUS 

The  first  edition  of  Comenius,  Janua  appeared  in 
1631. x  In  the  numerous  subsequent  editions  the 
author  made  important  changes  and  additions.  In 
subject-matter,  the  Janua  comprehends  the  elements 
of  all  the  sciences  and  arts.  There  are  a  hundred 
chapter  headings  with  a  thousand  Latin  sentences  and 
their  German  equivalents  arranged  in  parallel  columns. 
The  subjects  treated  cover  a  wide  range  —  from  the 
origin  of  the  world  to  the  mind  and  its  faculties.  The 
first  chapter  is  an  introduction,  in  which  the  reader  is 
saluted,  and  informed  that  learning  consists  in  this : 
to  know  distinctions  and  names  of  things.  He  is 
assured  that  he  will  find  explained  in  this  little  book 
the  whole  world  and  the  Latin  language.  If  he  should 
learn  four  pages  of  it  by  rote,  he  would  find  his  eyes 
opened  to  all  the  liberal  arts. 

The  second  chapter  treats  of  the  creation  of  the 
world,  the  third  of  the  elements,  and  the  fourth  of  the 
firmament.  In  chapters  five  to  thirteen  inclusive,  fire, 
meteors,  water,  earth,  stones,  metals,  trees,  fruits, 
herbs,  and  shrubs  are  treated.  Animals  occupy  the 
next  five  chapters;  and  man  —  his  body,  external 
members,  internal  members,  qualities  and  accidents  of 
the  body,  ulcers  and  wounds,  external  and  internal 
senses,  the  intellect,  affections,  and  the  will  —  the 
eleven  following    chapters.      Nineteen  chapters  are 

1 1  am  indebted  to  Dr.  William  T.  Harris  for  the  use  of  the  copy 
of  the  Janua  belonging  to  the  library  of  the  Bureau  of  Education 
at  Washington.  It  is  a  handsome  Elzevir,  bound  in  vellum,  and 
published  at  Amsterdam  in  1661.  It  contains  863  pages,  511  of 
which  are  given  to  the  thousand  parallel  sentences  in  the  five  lan- 
guages (Latin,  French,  Spanish,  Italian,  and  German) ,  in  which  the 
book  appears.  The  remaining  352  pages  are  given  to  the  lexicon- 
vocabularies  in  the  different  languages. 


STUDY  OF  LANGUAGE  127 

given  to  the  mechanic  arts.  Twenty-one  chapters  deal 
with  the  house  and  its  parts,  marriage,  the  family, 
civic  and  state  economy.  Twelve  chapters  are  assigned 
to  grammar,  dialectics,  rhetoric,  arithmetic,  geometry, 
and  the  other  branches  of  knowledge,  describing  briefly 
what  they  are ;  and  ethics  gets  twelve  chapters,  a 
chapter  being  devoted  to  each  of  the  twelve  virtues. 
In  the  four  succeeding  chapters,  games,  death,  burial, 
and  the  providence  of  God  and  the  angels  are  treated. 
Chapter  ninety -nine  treats  of  the  end  of  the  world ;  and 
in  the  one-hundredth  chapter  Comenius  gives  some 
farewell  advice,  and  takes  leave  of  his  reader. 

Each  chapter  of  the  Janua  is  to  be  read  ten  times. 
In  the  first  reading  there  is  to  be  an  accurate  transla- 
tion into  the  vernacular;  at  the  second  reading  the 
whole  is  to  be  written  out,  Latin  and  vernacular,  and 
the  teacher  is  to  begin  conversation  in  the  Latin 
tongue.  At  the  third  reading  the  teacher  is  to  read 
the  Latin  aloud,  and  the  pupils  are  to  translate  into  the 
vernacular  without  seeing  the  printed  page.  At  the 
fourth  reading  the  grammar  is  to  be  written  out  and 
the  words  parsed.  Special  attention  is  to  be  given  to 
the  derivation  of  words  at  the  fifth  reading ;  the  syno- 
nyms to  be  explained  at  the  sixth ;  and  the  grammati- 
cal rules  applied  at  the  seventh.  At  the  eighth  reading 
the  pupils  are  to  learn  the  text  by  heart.  The  ninth 
reading  is  to  be  devoted  to  a  logical  analysis  of  the 
subject-matter;  and  the  tenth  and  last  reading  is  to  be 
conducted  by  the  pupils  themselves.  They  are  to 
challenge  one  another  to  repeat  portions  of  the  text. 

In  this  ingenious  manner  Comenius  applies  his  long- 
cherished  pansophic  theories  to  language  teaching,  the 
Janua  being  an  application  of  ideas  formulated  in  the 


128  COMENIUS 

Great  didactic.  It  is,  however,  more  than  an  applica- 
tion of  pansophic  notions  —  it  is  an  attempt  to  realize 
his  oft-enunciated  educational  maxim'  that  words  and 
things  should  never  be  divorced,  that  knowledge  of 
the  language  should  go  hand  in  hand  with  the  knowl- 
edge of  the  things  explained. 

The  success  of  the  Janua  was  most  unexpected,  and 
no  one  was  more  surprised  at  its  sudden  popularity 
than  Comenius  himself.  "  That  happened,"  he  writes, 
"which  I  could  not  have  imagined,  namely,  that  this 
childish  book  was  received  with  universal  approbation 
by  the  learned  world.  This  was  shown  me  by  the 
number  of  men  who  wished  me  hearty  success  with 
my  new  discovery ;  and  by  the  number  of  translations 
into  foreign  languages.  For,  not  only  was  the  book 
translated  into  twelve  European  languages,  since  I 
myself  have  seen  these  translations  (Latin,  Greek,  Bo- 
hemian, Polish,  German,  Swedish,  Dutch,  English, 
French,  Spanish,  Italian,  and  Hungarian),  but  also  into 
the  Asiatic  languages  —  Arabic,  Turkish,  and  Persian 
—  and  even  into  the  Mongolian,  which  is  understood 
by  all  the  East  Indies." 

The  Janua,  more  than  any  other  book  that  he  wrote, 
made  Comenius'  name  familiar  to  scholars  throughout 
the  world,  and  for  more  than  a  century  it  was  the  most 
popular  secondary-school  text-book  in  use.  How  came 
this  book  to  confer  on  its  author  such  world-wide 
fame  ?  "  Partly,"  answers  Raumer,  "  from  the  pleasure 
found  in  the  survey  of  the  whole  world,  adapted  both 
to  young  and  old,  and  at  a  day  when  no  great  scientific 
requirements  were  made.  Many  were  amused  by  the 
motley  variety  of  the  imaginations  and  investigations 
of  the  book ;  by  its  old-fashioned  grammatical,  didactic, 


STUDY  OF  LANGUAGE  W  129 

V£,gAUFO£ 

and  rhetorical  discussions,  and  its  spiritual  extrava- 
gances. The  greatest  influence  was,  however,  exerted 
by  the  fundamental  maxim  of  the  book  —  that  the 
knowledge  of  a  language,  and  especially  of  the  Latin, 
should  go  hand  in  hand  with  a  knowledge  of  the  things 
explained  in  it." 1 

Atrium  and  Vestibulum 

The  Janua  was  followed  in  1633  by  the  Atrium.  It 
contains  427  short  sentences  somewhat  more  amplified 
than  in  the  Janua.  In  the  introduction  the  teacher 
promises  .to  initiate  the  pupil  into  the  mysteries  of 
wisdom,  the  knowledge  of  all  things,  the  ability  to  do 
right  always,  and  to  speak  correctly  of  everything, 
especially  in  Latin,  which,  as  a  common  language  to 
all  nations,  is  indispensable  to  a  complete  education. 
The  foundation  of  things  is  laid  in  the  Vestibulum 
(subsequently  published)  ;  the  Janua  furnishes  the 
materials  for  the  building ;  and  the  Atrium  provides 
the  decorations.  With  the  completion  of  these,  pupils 
may  confer  with  the  wisest  authors  through  their 
books,  and  through  this  reading  they  may  become 
learned,  wise,  and  eloquent. 

The  second  part  treats  of  substantives,  as  the  classi- 
fication of  things ;  the  third  part  of  adjectives,  as  the 
modification  of  things ;  the  fourth  part  explains  pro- 
nouns; in  the  fifth  part  verbs  are  introduced;  the 
sixth  part  discusses  adverbs,  the  seventh  part  preposi- 
tions, the  eighth  part  conjunctions,  and  the  ninth  part 
interjections.     The  tenth  part  contains  examples  of 

1  The  Janua  has  lately  been  brought  out  in  France  in  inexpen- 
sive form  by  Professor  A.  C.  Vernier  of  the  College  of  Autun.  (Au- 
tun,  1899.    pp.  350.) 


130  COMENIUS 

the  derivation  of  words.  The  Atrium  was  intended  as 
a  simplified  Latin  grammar  to  be  used  with  the  graded 
system  of  language  teaching  outlined  by  Comenius. 

The  Vestibulum,  although  written  and  published 
after  the  Janua  and  Atrium,  was  intended  as  a  first 
book  or  Latin  primer.  The  Janua  was  found  to  be 
too  difficult  for  the  younger  learners,  and  so  this  sim- 
ple book  was  composed  during  his  sojourn  at  Saros- 
Patak.  The  sentences  were  abbreviated,  and  they  deal 
with  simple  things.  The  following  are  the  chapter 
headings:  (1)  Concerning  the  accidents  or  qualities  of 
things;  (2)  Concerning  the  actions  and  passions  of 
things;  (3)  The  circumstances  of  things;  (4)  Things 
in  the  school ;  (5)  Things  at  home ;  (6)  Things  in  the 
city;  (7)  Concerning  the  virtues.  He  expresses  regret 
that  he  is  unable  to  illustrate  the  text  of  the  Vestibulum 
with  cuts  to  amuse  the  pupils  and  enable  them  the 
better  to  remember,  but  says  that  he  could  find  no 
artists  competent  to  do  the  required  illustrative  work. 
He  urges  the  teachers  to  supply  the  want  of  such  cuts 
by  explanations  of  the  things,  or  by  showing  the  things 
themselves.  Without  some  such  devices,  the  instruc- 
tion must  necessarily  be  lifeless.  "The  parallelism 
of  the  knowledge  of  words  and  things  is  the  deepest 
secret  of  the  method." 

Orbis  Pictus 

The  idea  of  the  use  of  pictures  in  elementary  school 
work  was  suggested  to  Comenius  by  Professor  Lubinus, 
of  Rostock,  who  edited  in  1614  a  Greek  testament  in 
three  languages.  He  suggested  reforms  in  the  simpli- 
fication of  language  instruction,  and  advised  the  con- 


STUDY  OF  LANGUAGE  131 

struction  of  a  book  containing  pictures  of  things,  with 
a  certain  number  of  brief  sentences  attached  to  each, 
until  all  the  words  and  phrases  of  Latin  were  exhausted. 

While  at  Saros-Patak,  he  carried  into  effect  the  desires 
set  forth  in  the  Vestibulum  with  reference  to  an  illus- 
trated child's  first  Latin  reader,  although  the  book  was 
not  printed  until  some  years  later,  because  of  unex- 
pected difficulty  in  finding  a  skilful  engraver  in  copper. 
In  a  letter  to  Michel  Endter,  of  Nuremberg,  who  sub- 
sequently published  the  Orbis  pictus,  Comenius  wrote 
in  1655 :  "  It  may  be  observed  that  many  of  our  chil- 
dren grow  weary  of  their  books,  because  they  are  over- 
filled with  things  which  have  to  be  explained  by  the 
help  of  words.  The  pupils,  and  often  the  teachers 
themselves,  know  next  to  nothing  about  the  things." 

The  Orbis  pictus  was  first  published  at  Nuremberg 
in  1657 ;  and,  although  the  Janua  had  been  received 
with  well-nigh  universal  favor,  its  popularity  was  sur- 
passed by  the  illustrated  book.  I  have  no  means  of 
knowing  how  many  editions  of  the  Orbis  pictus  have 
appeared  during  the  last  two  hundred  and  fifty  years. 
I  have  myself  seen  twelve  different  editions  in  the 
British  Museum,  Comenius-Stiftung,  library  of  Harvard 
University,  and  elsewhere.  These  are:  Nuremberg, 
1657,  Latin-German;  London,  1658,  Latin-English; 
Amsterdam,  1673,  Latin-Dutch-German;  Nuremberg, 
1679,  Latin-German-Italian-French ;  London,  1727, 
Latin-English ;  Nuremberg,  1746,  Latin-German ;  Lon- 
don, 1777,  Latin-German ;  St.  Petersburg,  1808,  Latin- 
Russian-German ;  New  York,  1810,  Latin-English; 
Wroctawin,  1818,  Latin-Polish-French-German;  Ko- 
nigsgratz,  1883,  Latin-Bohemian-German-French;  Sy- 
racuse, 1887,  Latin-English. 


132  COMENIUS 

The  purpose  of  the  Orbis  pictus,  as  indicated  by 
Comenius  in  the  preface,  was : 

1.  To  entice  witty  children  to  learn ;  for  it  is  appar- 
ent that  children,  even  from  their  infancy,  are  de- 
lighted with  pictures  and  willingly  please  their  eyes 
with  them.  And  it  will  be  very  well  worth  the  pains 
to  have  once  brought  it  to  pass  that  scarecrows  may 
be  taken  away  out  of  wisdom's  gardens. 

2.  This  same  little  book  will  serve  to  stir  up  the 
attention,  which  is  to  be  fastened  upon  things,  and 
even  to  be  sharpened  more  and  more,  which  is  also  an 
important  matter.  For  the  senses  being  the  main 
guides  of  childhood  (because  therein  the  mind  does  not 
as  yet  rise  to  an  abstract  contemplation  of  things),  they 
must  evermore  seek  their  own  objects;  if  the  objects 
are  not  present,  the  senses  grow  dull  and  flit  hither 
and  thither  out  of  weariness.  But  when  the  objects 
are  present,  they  grow  merry,  wax  lively,  and  willingly 
suffer  themselves  to  be  fastened  upon  them  till  the 
things  be  sufficiently  discerned.  This  book,  then,  will 
do  a  good  piece  of  service  in  taking  flickering  wits  and 
preparing  them  for  deeper  studies. 

3.  Children  being  thus  interested  and  the^attention 
attracted,  they  may  be  furnished  with  the  knowledge 
of  the  most  important  things  by  sport  and  merry  pas- 
time. In  a  word,  this  book  will  add  pleasure  to  the  use 
of  the  Vestibulum  and  Janua,  for  which  end  it  was  at 
the  first  chiefly  intended.  The  accounts  of  the  things 
being  given  in  the  mother-tongue,  the  book  promises 
three  good  things :  (1)  It  will  afford  a  device  for  learn- 
ing to  read  more  easily  than  hitherto,  especially  having 
a  symbolical  alphabet  set  before  it,  with  pictures  of 
the  voices  [creatures]  to  be  imitated.     The  young  ABC 


STUDY  OF  LANGUAGE  133 

pupils  will  easily  remember  the  force  of  every  char- 
acter by  looking  at  the  creatures,  and  the  imagination 
will  be  strengthened.  Having  looked  over  a  table  of 
the  chief  syllables,  the  children  may  proceed  to  view 
the  pictures  and  the  inscriptions  set  under  them. 
Simply  looking  upon  the  object  pictured  will  suggest 
the  name  of  the  object  and  tell  how  the  picture  is  to 
be  read.  Thus  the  whole  book  being  gone  over  by  the 
bare  use  of  the  pictures,  reading  cannot  but  be  learned. 
(2)  The  book  beingjiseji  in  the  vernacular-wyrl-serve 
for  the  perfect  learning  of  the  mother-tongue.  (3)  The 
learning  of  the  vernacular  words  will  serve  as  a  plea-  / 
sant  introduction  to  the  Latin  tongue.  — — ' 

The  Oxbis  pictus  was  translated  for  use  in  English 
schools  in  1658  by  Charles  Hoole,  a  London  school- 
master. He  observes  in  his  introduction :  "  There  are 
few  of  you  (I  think)  but  have  seen,  and  with  great 
willingness  have  made  use  of  (or  at  least  pursued), 
many  of  the  books  of  this  well-deserving  author,  Mr. 
John  Comenius,  which,  for  their  profitableness  to  the 
speedy  attainment  of  a  language,  have  been  translated 
into  several  countries,  out  of  Latin  into  their  native 
tongue.  Now  the  general  verdict  (after  trial  made) 
that  hath  passed,  touching  those  formerly  extant,  is 
this,  that  they  are  indeed  of  singular  use,  and  very 
advantageous  to  those  of  more  discretion  (especially  of 
such  as  already  have  a  smattering  of  Latin)  to  help 
their  memories  to  retain  what  they  have  scatteringly 
gotten  here  and  there,  to  furnish  them  with  many 
words,  which  (perhaps)  they  have  not  formerly  read, 
or  so  well  observed ;  but  to  young  children  (whom  we 
have  chiefly  to  instruct),  as  to  those  that  are  ignorant 
altogether  of  things  and  words,  and  prove  rather  a 


134  COMENIUS 

mere  toil  and  burden,  than  a  delight  and  furtherance. 
For  to  pack  up  many  words  in  memory  of  things  not 
conceived  in  the  mind,  is  to  fill  the  head  with  empty 
imaginations,  and  to  make  the  learner  more  to  admire 
the  multitude  and  variety  (and  thereby  to  become  dis- 
couraged) than  to  care  to  treasure  them  up  in  hopes  to 
gain  more  knowledge  of  what  they  mean." 

The  first  lesson  in  the  Orbis  pictus  is  a  dialogue 
between  a  teacher  and  a  pupil.  The  former  says, 
"  Come,  boy,  learn  to  be  wise."  Whereupon  the  latter 
asks,  "  What  doth  this  mean  ?  "  The  master  makes 
reply,  "  To  understand  rightly,  to  do  rightly,  and  to 
speak  rightly  all  that  are  necessary."  The  boy  asks 
who  will  teach  him  these  things,  to  which  the  master 
makes  reply,  "I,  by  God's  help,  will  guide  thee 
through  all.  I  will  show  thee  all ;  I  will  name  thee 
all."  To  all  this  the  boy  makes  eager  response:  u  See, 
here  I  am.  Lead  me  in  the  name  of  God."  The  mas- 
ter concludes  the  dialogue  with  this  injunction: 
"Before  all  things  thou  oughtest  to  learn  the  plain 
sounds  of  which  man's  speech  consisteth,  which  living 
creatures  know  how  to  make,  and  thy  tongue  knoweth 
how  to  imitate,  and  thy  hand  can  picture  out.  After- 
ward we  will  go  into  the  world,  and  we  will  view  all 
things."  Mr.  Maxwell *  thus  characterizes  this  intro- 
duction and  the  picture  that  illustrates  it :  "  The  boy, 
a  plump  but  not  a  pleasing  person,  and  the  master,  a 
man  '  severe '  and  '  stern  to  view,'  who  has  evidently 
all  the  frowns  and  none  of  the  jokes  of  Goldsmith's 
schoolmaster.  They  are  conversing  on  a  barren  plain, 
the  only  other  living  thing  in  sight  being  a  wild  ani- 

1  The  text-books  of  Comenius.  Proceedings  of  the  National 
Educational  Association  for  1892.    pp.  712-723. 


STUDY  OF  LANGUAGE  135 

mal  apparently  of  some  extinct  species.  In  the  back- 
ground are  a  village  church,  of  the  regulation  pattern, 
the  roofs  of  houses,  and  a  couple  of  pyramids  which 
are  intended  for  mountains." 

The  introduction  is  followed  by  an  illustrated  lesson 
on  the  sounds  of  the  letters  of  the  alphabet,  with  a 
picture  and  statement  (in  the  vernacular  and  Latin) 
of  the  sounds  made  by  animals.  The  crow  illustrates 
the  sound  of  a,  the  statement  in  the  English  being,  "  The 
crow  crieth " ;  in  the  Latin,  Comix  cornicatur.  A 
lamb  illustrates  the  sound  of  6,  the  statement  being, 
"  The  lamb  bleateth  "  (Latin,  Agnus  balat).  And  so  on 
through  the  alphabet.  This  is  what  Comenius  calls 
"  a  lively  and  vocal  alphabet." 

Like  the  Janua,  the  subjects  treated  in  the  Orbis 
pictus  cover  a  wide  range  of  topics.  Their  character 
may  be  indicated  by  the  following  citations  of  chapter 
headings :  God,  the  world,  the  heavens,  fire,  the  air, 
the  water,  the  clouds,  the  earth,  the  fruits  of  the  earth, 
metals,  stones,  trees,  fruits  of  trees,  flowers,  potherbs, 
corn,  shrubs,  birds,  tame  fowls,  singing  birds,  birds 
that  haunt  the  fields  and  woods,  ravenous  birds,  water- 
fowls, ravenous  vermin,  animals  about  the  house,  herd- 
cattle,  laboring  beasts,  wild  cattle,  wild  beasts,  ser- 
pents and  creeping  things,  crawling  vermin,  creatures 
that  live  as  well  by  water  as  by  land,  river-fish  and 
pond-fish,  sea-fish  and  shell-fish,  man,  the  seven  ages 
of  man,  the  outward  parts  of  man,  the  head  and  the 
hand,  the  flesh  and  bowels,  the  charnels  and  bones,  the 
outward  and  inward  senses,  the  soul  of  man,  deformed 
and  monstrous  people,  dressing  of  gardens,  husbandry, 
grazing,  grinding,  bread-making,  fishing,  fowling, 
hunting,  butchery,  cookery,  the  vintage,   brewing,  a 


136  COMENIUS 

feast,  and  so  on  to  the  one  hundred  and  fifty-first 
chapter,  in  which  the  first  illustration  is  reproduced 
with  this  benediction  by  the  master:  "Thus  thou 
hast  seen  in  short  all  things  that  can  be  shewed,  and 
hast  learned  the  chief  words  of  the  Latin  and  mother- 
tongue.  Go  on  now  and  read  other  good  books  dili- 
gently, and  thou  shalt  become  learned,  wise  and 
godly.  Kemember  these  things :  Fear  God  and  call 
upon  him  that  he  may  bestow  upon  thee  the  spirit  of 
wisdom.     Farewell." 

Under  the  pictures  illustrating  each  chapter  follows 
the  descriptions  in  the  vernacular  and  the  Latin.  The 
following  on  the  school  may  be  taken  as  characteristic 
of  the  book :  — 

A  school  (1)  Schola  (1) 

is  a  shop  in  which  young  wits  est  officina  in  qu£  novelli  animi 

are  fashioned  to  virtue,  and  it  formantur  ad  virtutem  &  dis- 

is  distinguished  into  classes.  tinguitur  in  classes. 

The  master  (2)  Prseceptor  (2) 

sits  in  a  chair  (3)  sedet  in  cathedra  (3) 

the  scholars  (4)  discipuli  (4) 

in  forms  (5)  in  subselliis  (5) 

he  teaches,  they  learn.  ille  docet,  hi  discunt. 

Some  things  are  writ  down  Qusedam  prse  scribuntur  illis 

before  them  with  chalk  on  a  creta  in  tabella.  (6) 
table.  (6) 

Some  sit  Quidam  sedent 

at  a  table  and  write  (7)  ad  mensam  &  scribunt  (7), 

he  mendeth  their  faults  (8)  ipse  corrigit  mendas  (8). 

Some    stand    and    rehearse  Quidam     stant    &    recitant 

things  committed  to  memoiy  mandata  memories  (9). 
(9). 

Some  talk  together  (10)  and  Quidam  confabulantur  (10) 

behave    themselves    wantonly  ac  gerunt  se  petulantes  &  neg- 

and  carelessly  ;  these  are  chas-  ligentes  ;  hi  castigantur 

tised  with  a  ferrula  (11)  ferula  (baculo)  (11) 

and  a  rod  (12)  &  virga  (12). 


STUDY  OF  LANGUAGE  137 

The  braced  figures  refer  to  the  objects  numbered 
in  the  cut ;  for  example,  a  group  of  students  convers- 
ing together  in  the  illustration  is  marked  10  in  the 
cut  and  in  the  text.  The  purpose  of  Comenius,  it 
sJiojihLhe.  noted  J.n  passing,  was  primarily  to  teach  the 
vernacular  through  things  and  the  representation  of 
things ;  although  he  had  no  objection  to  the  learning 
of  the  Latin  with  the  vernacular.  His  aim,  as  stated 
by  himself,  "That  instruction  may  progress  without 
hindrance,  and  neither  learning  nor  teaching  delay, 
since  what  is  printed  in  words  may  be  brought  before 
the  eyes  by  sight,  and  thus  the  mind  may  be  in- 
structed without  error." 

"  Primer  though  it  be,"  says  G.  Stanley  Hall,  "  the 
Orbis  pictus  sheds  a  broad  light  over  the  whole  field 
of  education."  Compayre  remarks,  "  It  was  the  first 
practical  application  of  the  intuitive  method,  and  has 
served  as  a  model  for  the  innumerable  illustrated 
books  which  for  three  centuries  have  invaded  the 
schools."  And  Raumer,  who  is  little  given  to  praise 
of  Comenius  and  his  schemes,  adds,  "  The  Orbis  pictus 
was  the  forerunner  of  future  development,  and  had  for 
its  object,  not  merely  the  introduction  of  an  indistinct 
painted  world  into  the  school,  but,  as  much  as  possible, 
a  knowledge  of  the  original  world  itself,  by  actual 
intercourse  with  it." 

Professor  Laurie  is  doubtless  right  when  he  says 
that  Comenius  knew  little  psychology — scarcely  more 
than  the  generalizations  of  Plato  and  Aristotle,  and 
these  not  strictly  investigated  by  himself.  Yet  who 
can  read  these  lines  in  the  preface  of  the  Orbis  pictus, 
"  This  little  book  will  serve  to  stir  up  the  attention, 
which  is  to  be  fastened  upon  things,  and  ever  to  be 


138  COMENIUS 

sharpened  more  and  more;  for  the  senses  ever  more 
seek  their  own  objects,  and  when  the  objects  are 
present,  they  grow  merry,  wax  lively,  and  willingly 
suffer  themselves  to  be  fastened  upon  them,  until  the 
things  are  sufficiently  discerned  "  —  who  can  read  these 
lines,  and  reflect  upon  the  manner  in  which  volitional 
attention  operates  in  the  higher  spheres  of  thought  and 
emotion,  and  say  that  Comenius  was  altogether  igno- 
rant of  the  psychological  law  that  the  power  of  the  will 
over  the  attention  of  little  children  is  largely  a  matter 
•of  automatic  fixation,  depending  upon  the  attractive- 
ness of  the  objects  that  affect  the  senses. 

Methodus  Novissima 

While  residing  at  Elbing,  Comenius  wrote  the 
Methodus  novissima  for  the  use  of  the  teachers  of 
Sweden.  This  he  intended  as  a  plan  of  studies,  and  it 
contains  the  principles  which  must  lie  at  the  basis  of 
every  rational  course  of  study.  The  three  principles 
of  his  method  are  the  parallelism  of  things  and  words, 
proper  stages  of  succession,  and  easy  natural  progress. 
In  God  are  the  ideas,  the  original  types  which  he 
impresses  upon  things;  things,  again,  impress  their 
representation  upon  the  senses,  the  senses  impart 
them  to  the  mind,  the  mind  to  the  tongue,  and  the 
tongue  to  the  ears  of  others ;  for  souls  shut  up  in 
bodies  cannot  understand  each  other  in  a  purely 
intellectual  way. 

Any  language  is  complete  in  so  far  as  it  possesses  a 
full  nomenclature,  has  words  for  everything, —  and 
these  significant  and  consistent, —  and  is  constructed 
in  accordance  with  fixed  grammatical  laws.     It  is  a 


STUDY  OF  LANGUAGE  139 

source  of  error  when  things  accommodate  themselves 
to  words,  instead  of  words  to  things.  The  same 
classification  prevails  for  words  as  for  things;  and 
whoever  understands  the  relation  of  words  among 
themselves  will,  the  more  easily,  study  the  analogous 
relations  among  things. 

Vives  thought  that  the  most  complete  language 
would  be  that  in  which  the  words  express  the  nature 
of  things,  and  Comenius  believed  that  there  could  be 
composed  a  real  language  in  which  each  word  should 
be  a  definition. 

To  be  able  to  represent  a  thing  by  the  mind,  hand, 
or  tongue  is  to  understand  it.  The  mental  process 
involved  consists  of  representations  and  images  of  the 
pictures  of  things.  If,  says  Comenius,  I  perceive  a 
thing  by  the  senses,  its  image  is  impressed  upon  my 
brain ;  if  I  represent  a  thing,  I  impress  its  image  upon 
the  material;  but  if  I  express  in  words  the  thing 
which  I  have  thought  of  or  represented,  I  impress  it 
upon  the  atmosphere,  and  through  it  upon  the  ear, 
brain,  and  mind  of  another. 

Things  are  learned  by  examples,  rules,  and  practice. 
Before  the  understanding,  truth  must  be  held  up  as 
an  example;  before  the  will,  the  good;  before  the 
forming  powers,  the  ideal ;  and  to  these  must  be 
added  practice  regulated  by  suitable  rules.  But  rules 
should  not  be  given  before  the  examples.  This 
is  well  understood  by  artisans;  they  do  not  begin 
by  lecturing  to  their  apprentices  upon  trades,  but  by 
showing  them  how  masters  work  and  then  by  putting 
tools  in  their  hands  and  training  them  to  imitate 
their  masters.  We  learn  to  do  by  doing,  to  write 
by  writing,  and  to  paint  by  painting. 


140  COMENIUS 

The  second  step  must  never  be  taken  until  the  first 
is  learned ;  and  the  first  step  should  be  repeated  and 
assimilated  with  the  second  step.  We  should  advance 
from  the  easy  to  the  more  difficult,  from  the  near  to 
the  more  distant,  and  from  the  simple  to  the  complex. 
Proceed  toward  knowledge  by  the  perception  and 
understanding  of  objects  present  to  the  senses,  and 
later  to  the  information  of  others  about  the  objects. 

The  attention  should  be  fixed  upon  one  object  at  a 
time ;  first  upon  the  whole,  then  upon  the  parts.  The 
understanding  should  compare  the  objects  being  per- 
ceived with  similar  objects  previously  observed.  The 
memory  has  three  offices :  to  receive  impressions,  to 
retain  impressions,  and  to  recall  impressions.  Keten- 
tion  will  be  made  easier  by  repetition,  and  recollection 
by  the  association  of  perceived  relations.  The  young- 
est children  should  be  instructed  by  means  of  visible 
objects,  and  pictures  impress  themselves  most  firmly 
upon  the  memory. 

Teachers  who  are  themselves  intellectually  quick 
must  avoid  impatience.  The  pupils  who  learn  the 
quickest  are  not  always  the  best ;  and  the  dulness  of 
the  pupils  must  be  supplemented  by  the  teacher's 
industry.  Learning  will  be  easy  to  pupils  if  teachers 
manage  them  in  a  friendly  way  and  study  the  dispo- 
sition of  each  child.  Children  must  not  only  be  made 
to  look  at  their  lessons,  but  to  enter  into  the  spirit  of 
the  subject  under  consideration. 

We  should  remember  that  schools  are  the  workshops 
of  humanity ;  and  that  they  should  work  their  pupils 
into  the  right  and  skilful  use  of  their  reason,  speech, 
and  talents  —  into  wisdom,  eloquence,  readiness,  and 
shrewdness.     Thus  will  the  teachers  shape  these  little 


STUDY  OF  LANGUAGE  141 

images  of  God,  or,  rather,  fill  up  the  outlines  of  good- 
ness, power,  and  wisdom  impressed  upon  them  by 
divine  power.  The  art  of  teaching  is  no  shallow 
affair,  but  one  of  the  deepest  mysteries  of  nature  and 
salvation. 


CHAPTER  IX 

INFLUENCE  OF  COMENIUS  ON  MODERN  EDUCATORS 

Francke  —  Early  educational  undertakings  —  The  institution  at 
Halle  —  Character  of  the  paedagogium  —  Impulse  given  to  modern 
learning.  Rousseau  — The  child  the  centre  of  educational 
schemes  —  Sense  training  fundamental  —  Order  and  method  of 
nature  to  be  followed.  Basedow— Protests  against  traditional 
methods  —  Influenced  by  the  Emile  —  His  educational  writings  — 
The  Philanthropinum.  Pestalozzi  —  Love  the  key-note  of  his 
system  —  Domestic  education  —  Education  for  all  classes  and 
sexes  —  The  study  of  nature — Impulse  given  to  the  study  of 
geography.  Frobel  —  His  relations  to  Comenius  and  Pestalozzi  — 
Educational  value  of  play  and  principle  of  self-activity  —  Women 
as  factors  in  education.  Herbart  —  Assimilation  of  sense- 
experience —  Training  of  character  —  Doctrine  of  interest. 

It  is  less  easy  to  trace  the  influence  of  Comenius  on 
modem  educational  reformers  than  to  indicate  the 
traces  of  his  pedagogic  development,  since  he  read 
widely  and  credited  cheerfully  the  paternity  of  his 
educational  ideals.  He  says  in  this  connection:  "I 
gave  my  mind  to  the  perusal  of  divers  authors,  and 
lighted  upon  many  which  at  this  age  have  made  a 
beginning  in  reforming  the  method  of  studies,  as 
^Ratke,  Helwig,  Eheinus,  Bitter,  Glaum,  Csecil,  and, 
who  indeed  should  have  the  first  place,  John  Valentine 
Andrese,  a  man  of  noble  and  clear  brain ;  as  also  Cam- 
panella  and  the  Lord  Yerulam,  those  famous  restorers 
of  philosophy ;  by  reading  of  whom  I  was  raised  in 
good  hope,  that  at  last  those  so  many  various  sparks 
would  conspire  into  a  flame ;  yet  observing  here  and 

142 


INFLUENCE   OF  COMENIUS  ON  EDUCATION    143 

there  some  defects  and  gaps,  I  could  not  contain 
myself  from  attempting  something  that  might  rest 
upon  an  immovable  foundation,  and  which,  if  it  could 
be  once  found  out,  should  not  be  subject  to  any  ruin. 
Therefore,  after  many  workings  and  tossings  of  my 
thoughts,  by  reducing  everything  to  the  immovable 
laws  of  nature,  I  lighted  upon  my  Great  didactic, 
which  shows  the  art  of  teaching  all  things  to  all  men." 
Such  commendable  frankness  is  not  always  found  in 
the  reformers  that  follow  Comenius ;  but  in  their  writ- 
ings it  is  not  difficult  to  discern  community  of  ideas 
first  definitely  formulated  by  Comenius.  This  holds 
true  in  a  degree  of  all  reformers  since  Comenius'  day, 
but  in  a  measure  sufficiently  large  to  require  passing 
note  in  Francke,  Rousseau,  Basedow  Pestalozzi,  Frobel, 
and  Herbart. 

Francke l 

Of  a  profoundly  religious  nature  like  Comenius, 
Francke  applied  himself  to  the  study  of  theology  at  the 
Universities  of  Kiel  and  Leipzig,  after  having  studied 
at  Erfurt.  The  listless  and  heartless  character  of  the 
teaching  and  study  at  these  institutions  impressed  him 
profoundly,  and  directed  his  attention  to  the  need  of 
educational  reform.  Four  years  after  taking  his  degree 
at  Leipzig  (1688),  he  established  an  infant  school  at 
Hamburg,  which,  though  brief,  was,  as  he  tells  us,  the 
richest  and  happiest  experience  of  his  long  and  varied 
career.  It  taught  him  the  lesson  which  he  thought 
was  needed  alike  by  himself  and  his  contemporaries  — 

1  For  a  full  account  of  Francke's  life  and  work  see  A.  H.  Francke' s 
Padagogische  Schriften.  Nebst  einer  Darstellung  seines  Lebens 
und  seiner  Stiftungen.  Herausgeg.  von  G.  Kramer.  Langensalza, 
1876. 


i 


144  COMENIUS 

that  teachers  of  little  children  entered  upon  their  work 
with  altogether  too  little  preparation.  He  says,  "  Upon 
the  establishment  of  this  school,  I  learned  how  destruc- 
tive is  the  usual  school  management,  and  how  exceed- 
ingly difficult  is  the  discipline  of  children ;  and  this 
reflection  made  me  desire  that  God  would  make  me 
worthy  to  do  something  for  the  improvement  of  schools 
and  instruction." 

He  received  an  ecclesiastical  call  to  Erfurt,  which  he 
accepted,  but  his  orthodoxy  was  questioned  and  he  was 
not  permitted  to  fill  the  office  to  which  he  had  been 
appointed.  The  foundation  of  the  University  of  Halle, 
in  1691,  made  an  opening  for  him  in  the  chair  of 
Greek  and  Oriental  languages.  While  serving  in  this 
capacity,  he  organized  the  philanthropic  institution 
which  has  made  Halle  famous.  It  began  as  a  charity 
work  among  the  poor,  and  grew  to  such  proportions 
that  at  his  death,  in  1727,  —  thirty -three  years  after 
its  inception,  — it  included  (1)  the  psedagogium  with 
eighty-two  students  and  seventy  teachers  and  pupil- 
teachers  ;  (2)  the  Latin  school  of  the  orphanage  with 
three  inspectors,  thirty-two  teachers,  four  hundred 
pupils,  and  ten  servants ;  (3)  elementary  schools  in 
Halle  for  the  children  of  citizens,  employing  four 
inspectors,  ninety-eight  male  and  eight  female  teach- 
ers, and  having  an  enrollment  of  one  thousand  and 
twenty -five  children;  (4)  apothecary  shops  and  book- 
stores. As  a  charity  school,  Francke's  institution 
became  the  model  of  hundreds  organized  in  Europe 
during  the  next  century. 

The  paedagogium,  which  was  a  part  of  the  great 
philanthropic  institution,  was  opened  in  1696,  as  a 
select  school  for  the  sons  of  noblemen.     It  was  one 


INFLUENCE  OF   COMENIUS  ON  EDUCATION    145 

of  the  earliest  training  schools  for  teachers,  and  the 
forerunner  of  university  pedagogical  seminaries, 
which,  in  Germany  at  least,  serve  as  training  schools 
for  teachers  in  secondary  schools.  Francke  aimed  to 
fit  young  men,  and  particularly  university  students, 
in  the  faculties  of  philosophy  and  theology,  for  greate 
usefulness  as  teachers.  Indeed,  much  of  the  teaching 
in  the  paedagogium  was  done  by  the  university  stu- 
dents who  contemplated  teaching  careers.  Besides  the 
practice  work,  instruction  was  given  in  the  history 
and  theory  of  education,  methods  of  teaching,  and 
school  organization  and  government.  Francke's  paeda- 
gogium was  a  worthy  progenitor  of  the  long  line  of 
renowned  university  seminaries  which  are  now  inte- 
gral factors  of  the  German  universities,  such,  for 
example,  as  the  deservedly  noted  pedagogical  semi- 
nary at  Jena  under  the  direction  of  Professor  Wilhelm 
Rein,  and  the  not  less  noted  pedagogical  seminaries  at 
Leipzig  under  Professors  Volkelt,  Schiller,  and  Richter. 
Like  Comenius,  Francke  valued  less  the  classical 
iculture,  but  more  the  modern  learning  which  fitted  for 
\the  duties  of  life.  "It  is  a  common  evil,"  he  says, 
that  we  do  not  teach  what  we  use  in  our  occupations 
every  day."  This  led  him  to  give  large  consideration 
to  the  study  of  the  mother-tongue.  "  I  find  few  uni- 
versity students,"  he  says,  "who  can  write  a  German 
letter  correctly  spelled.  They  violate  orthography  in 
almost  every  line.  I  know  of  many  examples  where, 
after  they  have  entered  upon  the  ministry  and  have 
had  occasion  to  have  something  printed,  it  has  been 
necessary  to  have  their  manuscripts  first  corrected  in 
almost  every  line.  The  reason  for  this  defect  is  usu- 
ally in  the  schools,  where  only  the  Latin  translation 


I 


146  COMENIUS 

of  their  exercises  is  corrected,  but  not  the  German." 
In  many  ways  he  labored  to  actualize  the  larger  idea 
of  education  which  Comenius  had  outlined  in  the 
Great  didactic. 

Rousseau 

While  he  does  not  mention  @omenius  by  name,  even 
a  cursory  reading  of  the  Emile1  furnishes  abundant 
evidence  of  Rousseau's  familiarity  with  the  writings 
of  the  Moravian  reformer,  if  not  at  first  hand,  then 
through  the  writings  of  others.  At  any  rate,  some 
striking  parallels  are  suggested  in  a  comparative  study 
of  the  writings  of  the  two  reformers.  As  summarized 
by  Mr.  Davidson,2  Rousseau's  educational  demands 
are  threefold:  (1)  the_jdemand  that  children^should, 
from  the  moment  of  their  birth,  be  allowed  complete 
freedom  of  movement;  (2)  that  they  should  be  edu- 
cated through  direct  experience,  and  not  through  mere 
information  derived  from  books;  (3)  that  they  should 
be  taught  to  use  their  hands  in  the  production  of  use- 
ful articles.  These  demands,  it  will  be  recalled,  were 
also  made  by  Comenius  in  one  form  or  another. 

Comenius  and  Rousseau  both  emphasized  the  fact 

ythat  school  systems  must  be  made  for  children,  and 

hot  children  for  school  systems.     Neither  reformer 

ihared  the   schoolmaster's   customary   contempt   for 

1  An  abbreviated  translation  of  the  ftmile  has  been  made  by  Miss 
Eleanor  Worthington  (Boston:  D.  C.  Heath  &  Co.,  1891,  pp.  157), 
and  a  fuller  (though  not  complete)  translation  by  Professor  William 
H.  Payne  (New  York :  D.  Appleton  &  Co.,  1893.    pp.  355). 

2  Rousseau  and  education  according  to  nature.  By  Thomas 
Davidson.  New  York:  Charles  Scribner's  Sons,  1898.  pp.  253. 
Also  the  excellent  life  by  John  Morley,  in  two  volumes  (London  and 
New  York,  1888). 


I 


INFLUENCE  OF   COMENIUS  ON   EDUCATION    147 

childhood,  but  both  urged  that  childhood  must  be 
studied  and  loved  to  be  understood  and  trained,  and 
both,  if  they  had  lived  in  the  nineteenth  and  twentieth 
centuries,  would  have  been  enthusiastic  advocates  of 
child  study.  Says  Rousseau :  "  We  do  not  understand 
childhood,  and  pursuing  false  ideas  of  it,  our  every 
step  takes  us  farther  astray.  The  wisest  among  us 
fix  upon  what  it  concerns  men  to  know,  without  ever 
considering  what  children  are  capable  of  learning. 
They  always  expect  to  find  the  man  in  the  child,  with- 
out thinking  of  what  the  child  is  before  it  is  a  man. 
.  .  .  We  never  know  how  to  put  ourselves  in  the 
place  of  children;  we  do  not  enter  into  their  ideas; 
we  attribute  to  them  our  own;  and  following  always 
our  own  train  of  thought,  even  with  syllogisms,  we 
manage  to  fill  their  heads  with  nothing  but  extrava- 
gance and  error.  ...  I  wish  some  discreet  person 
would  give  us  a  treatise  on  the  art  of  observing  chil- 
dren —  an  art  which  would  be  of  immense  value  to  us, 
but  of  which  parents  and  teachers  have  not  as  yet 
learnt  the  very  rudiments." 

Sense  training  was  fundamental  in  Comenius' 
scheme  of  primary  education.  Nature  studies  — 
plants,  animals,  and  minerals  —  were  introduced  from 
the  first,  that  the  child  might  early  cultivate  his 
powers  of  observation,  and  form  the  habit  of  acquiring 
knowledge  at  first  hand.  .Rousseau  likewise  lays 
great  stress  on  sense  training.  "TSTfacuItie^Twhich" 
become  strong  in  us,"  he  says,  "are  our  senses.  ^Ihese> 
then,  are  the  first  that  should  be  cultivated ;  they  are, 
in  tact,  the  only  faculties  we  forget,  or  at  least  those 
which  we  neglect  most  completely.  The  child  wants 
to  touch  and  handle  everything.     By  no  means  check 


148  COMENIUS 

this  restlessness ;  it  points  to  a  very  necessary  appren- 
ticeship. Thus  it  is  that  the  child  gets  to  be  conscious 
of  the  hotness  or  coldness,  the  hardness  or  softness, 
the  heaviness  or  lightness  of  bodies,  to  judge  of  their 
size  and  shape  and  all  their  sensible  properties  by 
looking,  feeling,  listening,  especially  by  comparing 
sight  and  touch,  and  combining  the  sensations  of  the 
eye  with  those  of  the  fingers." 

Comenius,  Rousseau,  and,  in  fact,  all  the  realists 
from  Bacon  to  Herbert  Spencer,  ha^m_fi^aphasized  the 
thought  that  education  should  follow  the  order  ancT 


method  of  nature ;  though,  as  Professor  Payne  sug- 


gests, it  is  not  always  easy  to  form  a  clear  notion  of 
what  they  mean  by  nature,  when  they  say  that  educa- 
tion should  be  natural,  and  that  teachers  should  follow 
the  method  of  nature.  |  The  key-note  of  Rousseau's 
theory,  as  expressed  in  the  opening, paragraph  of  the 
Emile,  is  that  "_everyjbhing- is_good_as  it  comes  from 
"the  hands  of  the_j;Uthor_ofjQature,  but  everything 
degenerates  in  the  hands  of  man."^  Mr.  Davidson 
points  out  iriThls  study  of  Rousseau  that  the  air  was 
full  of  nature  panaceas  during  the  middle  years  of  the 
eighteenth  century,  and  that  these  were  applied  alike 
to  social,  political,  and  educational  institutions.  He 
says :  "  The  chief  of  these  notions  were  (1)  a  state  of. 
nature  as  man's  original  condition  —  a  state  conceived 
sometimes  as  one  of  goodness,  peace,  freedom,  equality, 
and  happiness,  sometimes  as  one  of  badness,  war, 
slavery,  inequality,  and  misery;  (2)  a  law  of  nature 
independent  of  all  human  enactment,  and  yet  binding 
upon  all  men  j  (3)  a  social  contract,  voluntarily  and 
consciously  made,  as  the  basis  of  justification  for  civil 
society  and  authority  —  a  contract    by   which  men 


INFLUENCE  OF  COMENIUS  ON  EDUCATION    149 

united  for  the  protection  of  rights  and  the  enforce- 
ment of  laws  which  had  existed  already  in  the  state 
of  nature ;  (4)  false  inequality  among  men,  as  due  to 
private  property,  or  the  usurpation  by  some  of  what, 
by  natural  right,  belonged  to  all;  (5)  a  peaceful, 
untroubled,  unenterprising,  unstruggling  existence  as 
the  normal  form  of  human  life." 

While  less  sane,  less  practical,  less  comprehensive 
in  his  educational  views  than  Comenius,  it  can  scarcely 
be  said  that  he  was  less  influential.  Differing  in  many 
important  particulars,  a  common  ideal  permeates  the 
writings  of  the  two  reformers  —  an  unbounded  faith 
in  the  possibilities  of  youth,  and  a  deep  conviction  that 
it  is  the  business  of  teachers  to  view  the  world  and 
nature  from  the  standpoint  of  young  and  growing 
children,  and  to  cling  with  less  tenacity  to  points  of 
view  established  by  antiquity  and  convention. 

Basedow 

While  resembling  Eousseau  more  than  Comenius  in 
temperament  and  character,  as  well  as  in  educational 
ideals,  there  is  yet  much  in  Basedow's  educational 
scheme  that  recalls  the  Moravian  reformer.  Born  at 
Hamburg,  in  1727,  he  experienced,  like  Eousseau,  an 
unhappy  childhood,  and,  like  Comenius,  received  a 
belated  education.     He  prepared  for  the  University  of 

1  To  except  the  brief  sketch  by  Quick  (Educational  reformers, 
pp.  273-289)  and  von  Raumer's  sketch  in  translation  in  Barnard's 
American  Journal  of  Education  (Vol.5,  pp.  487-520) ,  there  is  dearth 
of  material  on  Basedow  in  English.  For  an  excellent  account  in 
the  German  see  Padagogische  Schriften.  Mit  Einleitungen,  An- 
merkungen,  und  Basedow's  Biographie.  Herausgegeben  von  Hugo 
Goring.    Langensalza,  1879-80. 


150  COMENIUS 

Leipzig  at  the  Hamburg  gymnasium;  but  at  both 
institutions  he  rebelled  against  the  traditional  meth- 
ods of  instruction.  After  completing  the  course  in 
theology  at  Leipzig,  it  was  found  that  he  had  grown 
too  heterodox  for  ordination,  and  he  engaged  himself 
as  a  private  tutor  to  a  gentleman  in  Holstein. 
Remarkable  success  attended  his  labors  as  a  teacher. 
He  studied  his  children,  adapted  subject-matter  to 
their  capacities,  and  made  extensive  use  of  conversa- 
tional methods.  This  experience  secured  him  an 
appointment  in  Denmark,  where  he  taught  for  eight 
years.  But  his  essays  on  Methodical  instruction  in 
natural  and  Biblical  religion  disturbed  alike  the  seren- 
ity of  the  Danish  clergy  and-  schoolmasters,  and 
he  was  released  and  called  to  the  gymnasium  at 
Altoona,  where  he  encountered  opposition  no  less 
pronounced. 

Rousseau's  Emile  appeared  at  this  time,  and  it 
influenced  him  powerfully.  He  renewed  his  attacks  on 
contemporary  educational  practices ;  charged  universal 
neglect  of  physical  education  and  the  mother-tongue ; 
criticised  the  schools  for  devoting  so  much  time  to  the 
study  of  Latin  and  Greek,  and  for  the  mechanical  and 
uninteresting  methods  employed  in  teaching  these 
languages;  and  admonished  society  for  neglecting  to 
instruct  the  children  of  the  poor  and  middle  classes. 
Raumer,  who  is  no  admirer  of  Basedow,  admits  the 
justice  of  the  charges.  He  says:  "Youth  was  in 
those  days  for  most  children  a  sadly  harassed  period. 
Instruction  was  hard  and  heartlessly  severe.  Gram- 
mar was  caned  into  the  memory;  so  were  portions  of 
Scripture  and  poetry.  A  common  form  of  school  pun- 
ishment was  to  learn  by  heart  the  One  Hundred  and 


INFLUENCE   OF  COMENIUS  ON  EDUCATION    151 

Nineteenth  Psalm.  Schoolrooms  were  dismally  dark. 
No  one  conceived  it  possible  that  the  young  could  find 
pleasure  in  any  kind  of  work,  or  that  they  had  eyes  for 
aught  but  reading  and  writing.  The  pernicious  age 
of  Louis  XIV  had  inflicted  on  the  children  of  the 
upper  class  hair  curled  by  the  barber  and  messed  with 
powder  and  pomade,  braided  coats,  knee  breeches, 
silk  stockings,  and  a  dagger  by  the  side  —  for  active, 
lively  children  a  perfect  torture." 

The  publication,  in  1774,  of  his  Elementary  book 
with  plates  and  his  Book  of  methods  for  parents  and 
teachers,  formulated  and  brought  to  public  notice  his 
views  on  education.  The  Elementary  book  with  plates 
followed  closely  the  lines  of  Comenius,  and  it  has 
often  been  called  the  Orbis  pictus  of  the  eighteenth 
century.  The  purpose  of  the  book  was  clearly  ency- 
clopaedic. As  stated  by  himself,  his  aims  were: 
(1)  elementary  instruction  in  the  knowledge  of  words 
and  things;  (2)  an  incomparable  method,  founded 
upon  experience,  of  teaching  children  to  read  without 
weariness   or   loss   of  time;    (3)  natural  knowledge; 

(4)  knowledge  of  morals,  the  mind,  and  reasoning; 

(5)  a  thorough  and  impressive  method  of  instructing 
in  natural  religion,  and  for  a  description  of  beliefs  so 
impartial  that  it  shall  not  appear  of  what  belief  is  the 
writer  himself;  (6)  knowledge  of  social  duties  and 
commerce.  The  work  was  published  in  four  volumes 
and  illustrated  by  one  hundred  plates. 

The  Book  of  methods  presents  the  root-ideas  of 
Comenius  and  Rousseau.  In  it  he  says :  "  You  should 
attend  to  nature  in  your  children  far  more  than  to  art. 
The  elegant  manners  and  usages  of  the  world  are,  for 
the  most  part,  unnatural.     These  come  of  themselves 


152  COMENIUS 

in  later  years.  Treat  children  like  children,  that  they 
may  remain  the  longer  uncorrupted.  A  boy  whose 
acutest  faculties  are  his  senses,  and  who  has  no  per- 
ception of  anything  abstract,  must  first  of  all  be  made 
acquainted  with  the  world  as  it  presents  itself  to  the 
senses.  Let  this  be  shown  him  in  nature  herself,  or, 
where  this  is  impossible,  in  faithful  drawings  or 
models.  Thereby  can  he,  even  in  play,  learn  how  the 
various  objects  are  to  be  named.  Comenius  alone  has 
pointed  out  the  right  road  in  this  matter.  By  all 
means  reduce  the  wretched  exercises  of  the  memory." 
The  institution  which  carried  Basedow's  educational 
theories  into  practice  was  the  Philanthropinum  at 
Dessau,  which  became  both  famous  and  notorious  in 
the  days  of  the  founder,  and  exercised,  withal,  a 
powerful  influence  on  the  pedagogy  of  Germany  and 
Switzerland  during  the  last  quarter  of  the  eighteenth 
and  the  first  half  of  the  nineteenth  century.  What- 
ever may  have  been  its  faults,  it  had  the  merit  of 
looking  at  education  from  a  more  modern  standpoint. 
With  the  conviction  that  the  final  word  had  not  been 
spoken  on  pedagogy,  Basedow  boldly  determined  to 
find  new  methods  of  approach  to  the  child's  mind. 
As  an  experiment  the  Philanthropinum  was  both  inter- 
esting and  suggestive.  Kant,  who  recognizes  this 
aspect  of  its  utility,  says:  "It  was  imagined  that 
experiments  in  education  were  not  necessary;  but  this 
was  a  great  mistake.  Experience  shows  very  often 
that  results  are  produced  precisely  the  opposite  to 
those  which  had  been  expected.  We  also  see  from 
experiments  that  one  generation  cannot  work  out  a 
complete  plan  of  education.  The  only  experimental 
school  which  has  made  a  beginning  toward  breaking 


INFLUENCE  OF  COMENIUS  ON  EDUCATION    153 

the  path  is  the  institution  at  Dessau.  Whatever  its 
faults,  this  praise  must  be  given  it:  It  is  the  only 
school  in  which  teachers  have  had  the  liberty  to  work 
out  their  own  methods  and  plans,  and  where  they 
stood  in  connection,  not  only  with  each  other,  but  with 
men  of  learning  throughout  all  Germany." 

In  subjects  taught,  as  well  as  in  methods  of  teach- 
ing, Basedow  followed  Comenius  in  the  main.  Words 
were  taught  in  connection  with  things ;  object  teach- 
ing occupied  an  important  place ;  pictures  were  exten- 
sively used ;  children  were  first  taught  to  speak  and 
later  to  write  in  foreign  languages;  German  and 
Trench  held  positions  of  honor ;  arithmetic,  geometry, 
geography,  and  natural  history  were  all  taught;  great 
attention  was  given  to  the  physical  development  of 
the  children,  and  play  was  considered  as  important  as 
Latin;  school  hours  were  shortened;  the  discipline 
was  much  less  severe;  and  the  children  were  allowed 
and  permitted  to  take  degrees  of  freedom  altogether 
unheard  of  before  Basedow's  day. 

Pestalozzi  1 

Pestalozzi  was  not  widely  read  in  the  literature  of 
education ;  in  fact,  the  Emile  was  about  the  only  such 
book  he  ever  read,  as  he  himself  tells  us.     It  is, 

1  There  is  a  wealth  of  material  in  the  English  language  on  Pesta- 
lozzi. See:  Pestalozzi  and  the  modern  elementary  school,  by  Pro- 
fessor A.  Pinloche  (New  York :  Charles  Scribner's  Sons,  1900) ; 
Pestalozzi:  his  life  and  work,  by  Roger  de  Guimps  (New  York: 
D.  Appleton  &  Co.,  1897,  pp.  438) ;  Life,  work,  and  influence  of 
Pestalozzi,  by  Hermann  Krusi  (New  York:  American  Book  Co.,  pp. 
240) ;  and  the  rich  volume  of  sources  by  Henry  Barnard,  Pestalozzi 
and  Pestalozzianism  (Hartford,  1859,  pp.  238+230). 


154  COMENIUS 

nevertheless,  apparent  that  he  was  quite  as  much 
influenced  by  Comenius  as  by  Rousseau.  The  vital 
principle  of  his  reforms  —  love  of  ancL sympathy  f or. 
the  _child_ — had_  been_  as_.  forcefully-  enunciated  by 
Comenius  as  by  Rousseau;  and  the  saner  and  more 
practical  character  of  Pestalozzi's  enthusiasm  would 
lead  one  to  suppose  that  he  was  less  influenced  by  the 
author  of  the  Emile  than  by  the  Moravian  reformer. 
"The  first  qualification  for  the  task  [of  teaching]," 
says  Pestalozzi,  in  a  letter  to  Greaves,1  "  is  thinking 
love."  And  this  spirit  dominated  all  his  efforts  in 
behalf  of  educational  reform.  He  says :  "  It  is,  recorded 
that  God  opened  the  heavens  to  the  patriarch  of  old, 
and  showed  him  a  ladder  leading  thither.  This  ladder 
is  let  down  to  every  descendant  of  Adam  j  it  is  offered 
to  your  child.  But  he  must  be  taught  to  climb  it  — 
not  by  the  cold  calculations  of  the  head,  or  by  the 
mere  impulses  of  the  heart,  but  by  a  combination  of 
botln>- 

.  yjjoth  reformers  started  with  the  jfluld  a.t  hirtfr^ 
and  made  domestic  education  fundamental  to  their 
schemes.  "Maternal  love,"  says  Pestalozzi,  "is  the 
first  agent  in  education.  Nature  has  qualified  the 
mother  to  be  the  chief  factor  in  ithe  education  of 
the  child."  In  How  Gertrude  teaches  her  children2 
he  tells  us,  "  It  is  the  main  design  of  my  method  to 
make  home  instruction  again  possible  to  our  neglected 
people,  and  to  induce  every  mother  whose  heart  beats 

", 

1  Letters  on  early  education.  Addressed  to  J.  P.  Greaves,  Esq., 
Syracuse,  1898,  pp.  180. 

2  Translated  by  Lucy  E.  Holland  and  Frances  E.  Turner,  and 
edited  with  introduction  and  notes  by  Ebenezer  Cook.  Syracuse  : 
C.  W.  Bardeen,  1894.    pp.  xliv  +  256. 


INFLUENCE   OF   COMENIUS   ON  EDUCATION    155 

for  her  child  to  make  use  of  my  elementary  exercises."  J 
Again,  in  the  account  of  his  school  at  Stanz,  he  says : 
"  My  aim  was  to  simplify  teaching  so  that  the  common 
people  might  be  induced  to  begin  the  instruction  of 
their  children,  and  thus  render  superfluous  the  teach- 
ing of  the  elements  in  the  schools.  As  the  mother  is 
the  first  to  nourish  her  child  physically,  so  also,  by 
the  appointment  of  God,  she  must  be  the  first  to  give 
it  spiritual  and  mental  nourishment.  I  consider  that 
very  great  evils  have  been  occasioned  by  sending  chil- 
dren too  early  to  school;  and  by  adopting  so  many 
artificial  means  of  educating  them  away  from  home. 
The  time  will  come,  so  soon  as  we  shall  have  simpli- 
fied instruction,  when  every  mother  will  be  able  to 
teach,  without  the  hejp  of  others,  and  thereby,  at  the 
same  time,  go  on  herself  always  learning."  This,  it 
will  be  recalled,  was  also  Comenius'  cherished  desire 
in  the  School  of  infancy. 

/  Comenius  and  Pestalozzi  stand  almost  alone  among 

ffche  great  educational  reformers  in  proclaiming  the 

/doctrine  of  universal  education  —  training  for  the  poor 

r  as  well  as  the  rich,  for  the  lowly  born  as  well  as  for 

I  the   privileged    classes,    for   girls   as   well   as   boys^* 

i  "  Popular  education, "  says  Pestalozzi,  "  once  lay  before 

me  like  an  immense  marsh,  in  the  mire  of  which  I 

waded  about,  until  I  had  discovered  the  source  from 

which  its  waters  sprang,  as  well  as  the  causes  by 

which  their  free  course  is  obstructed,  and  made  myself 

acquainted  with  those  points  from  which  a  hope  of 

draining  its  pools  might  be  conceived.     Ever  since  my 

youthful  days,  the  course  of  my  feelings,  which  rolled 

on  like  a  mighty  stream,  was  directed  to  this  one  point, 

—  to  stop  the  sources  of  that  misery  in  which  I  saw 


156  COMENIUS 

the  people  around  me  immersed."  Such  regeneration 
he  thought  could  be  brought  about  by  consecrated  and 
intelligent  schoolmasters,  and  particularly,  as  G.  Stan- 
ley Hall  notes  in  his  admirable  introduction  to  the 
American  translation  of  Leonard  and  Gertrude,1  "by 
the  love  and  devotion  of  noble  women  overflowing 
from  the  domestic  circle  into  the  community,  by  the 
good  Gertrudes  of  all  stations  in  life,  the  born  edu- 
cators of  the  race,  whose  work  and  whose  'key-words  ' 
we  men  pedagogues  must  ponder  well  if  our  teaching 
is  to  be  ethically  inspired." 

The  study  of  nature,  and  this  at  first  hand,  was  like- 
wise an  inheritance  from  Comenius.  Pestalozzi  makes 
observation  the  basis  of  all  knowledge.  "If  I  look 
back  and  ask  myself  what  I  have  really  done  toward 
the  improvement  of  methods  of  elementary  instruction, 
I  find  that  in  recognizing  observation  as  the  absolute 
basis  of  all  knowledge,  I  have  established  the  first  and 
most  important  principle  of  instruction.  I  have  en- 
deavored to  discover  what  ought  to  be  the  character 
of  the  instruction  itself,  and  what  are  the  fundamental 
laws  according  to  which  the  education  of  the  human 
race  must  be  determined  by  nature." 

Comenius  was  the  first  of  the  educational  reformers 
to  recognize  the  importance  of  geography  as  a  subject 
of  school  study ;  and  although  he  had  it  taught  in  the 
schools  he  conducted,  and  gave  it  important  considera- 
tion in  his  educational  schemes,  the  study  received 
no  fresh  recognition  until  the  time  of  Pestalozzi. 
At  Stanz,  at  Burgdorf,  and  at  Yverdon,  geography 
ranked   as   one   of   the   foremost   elementary   school 

1  Translated  and  abridged  by  Eva  Cbanning.  With  an  Introduc- 
tion by  G.  Stanley  Hall.    Boston :  D.  C.  Heath  &  Co.,  1897.    pp.  181. 


INFLUENCE  OF  COMENIUS  ON  EDUCATION    157 

studies.  And  not  only  was  geography  taught  in  the 
schoolrooms,  but  better  than  that,  it  was  taught  in  the 
open  air.  Vulliemin,  iwho  was  two  years  a  student 
under  Pestalozzi  at  Yverdon,  writes :  "  The  first  ele- 
ments of  geography  were  taught  us  on  the  ground. 
We  began  the  study  by  taking  a  walk  along  a  narrow 
valley  on  the  outskirts  of  Yverdon.  We  were  led  to 
observe  all  its  details,  and  then  to  help  ourselves  to 
some  clay  we  found  there.  This  we  carried  back  in 
our  baskets,  and,  on  our  return  home,  we  had  to  make 
a  model  of  the  ground  walked  over,  and  of  the  sur- 
rounding country;  this  we  did  on  long  tables.  Our 
walks  were  extended,  from  time  to  time,  and,  on  our 
return,  we  added  new  features  as  we  learned  them." 
Pestalozzi  was  fortunate  in  having  with  him  at 
Yverdon  two  eminently  successful  German  teachers, 
who  comprehended  his  aims,  and  who  subsequently 
applied  his  methods  in  the  fatherland.  One  was  Hen- 
nig,  the  author  of  a  popular  pedagogic  work  on  home 
geography,  and  the  other  was  Karl  Kitter,  the  deserv- 
edly renowned  German  geographer.  Bitter  brought 
with  him  to  Yverdon  two  young  men  from  Frankfort 
whom  he  was  tutoring,  and  he  served  Pestalozzi  in  the 
capacity  of  a  pupil-teacher ;  and,  while  a  developed  man 
when  he  entered  the  institution,  in  1807,  he  came  to 
Yverdon,  as  so  many  other  enthusiastic  Germans  had 
done,  to  study  pedagogy  with  the  most  distinguished 
master  of  the  century.  Years  later,  when  Hitter  had 
become  the  best-known  geographer  of  his  age,  he 
wrote :  "  Pestalozzi  knew  less  geography  than  a  child 
in  one  of  our  primary  schools,  yet  it  was  from  him 
that  I  gained  my  chief  knowledge  of  this  science;  for 
it  was  in  listening  to  him  that  I  first  conceived  the 


158  COMENIUS 

idea  of  the  natural  method.  It  was  he  who  opened  the 
way  to  me,  and  I  take  pleasure  in  attributing  whatever 
value  my  work  may  have  entirely  to  him." 

Comenius  and  Pestalozzi  had  much  in  common  in 
their  aims  as  educational  reformers ;  and  they  together 
share,  as  Dr.  Hoffmeister1  points  out,  the  honor  of 
having  originated  and  carefully  elaborated  one  of  the 
most  efficient  elementary  school  systems  in  Europe  — 
the  Volksschule  in  Germany.    Pestalozzi  gave  himself 
to  education,  or,  to  use  his  own  significant  character- 
|  ization,  "  I  have  lived  all  my  days  like  a  beggar,  that  I 
\  might  teach  beggars  how  to  live  like  men."    Comenius 
Jgave  himself,  also,  and  he  gave  besides  a  half-dozen 
books,  which  take  classic  rank  in  the  permanent  liter- 
ature of  education. 

Frobel 

The  large  obligations  of  the  founder  of  the  kinder- 
garten to  both  Comenius  and  Pestalozzi  cannot  be 
gainsaid.  Frobel's  attention  was  called  to  the  writ- 
ings of  the  Moravian  reformer  early  in  his  educational 
career  by  Professor  Krause,  Herder,  and  others  inter- 
ested in  his  schemes.  "  Comenius  proposes  an  entirely 
new  basis  of  education,"  Professor  Krause  wrote  to 
Frobel.  "  He  attempts  to  find  a  method  of  education, 
consciously  based  upon  science,  whereby  teachers  will 
teach  less,  and  learners  will  learn  more ;  whereby  there 
will  be  less  noise  in  the  schools,  less  distaste,  fewer 
idle  pupils,  more  happiness  and  progress;  whereby 
confusion,  division,  and  darkness  will  give  place  to 
order,  intelligence,  and  peace."    He  adds,  "Comenius 

1  Comenius  und  Pestalozzi  als  Begriinder  der  Volksschule.  Von 
Hermann  Hoffmeister.    Berlin.  1877. 


INFLUENCE   OF  COMENIUS   ON  EDUCATION    159 

was  the  first  to  advocate  Pestalozzi's  doctrine  of 
observation  (Anschauung)."  Mr.  Hauschmann,1  one 
of  Frobel's  biographers,  remarks:  "Krause  looked 
upon  Frobel  as  the  educational  successor  of  Comenius 
and  Pestalozzi.  Frobel,  he  thought,  might  show,  as 
it  had  never  been  shown  before,  how  the  Pestalozzian 
doctrine  of  Anschauung  was  to  be  applied  to  the 
education  of  every  child." 

The  weeks  spent  with  Pestalozzi  in  the  autumn  of 
1805  and  the  two  subsequent  years  (1808-1810)  passed 
with  him  at  Yverdon,  gave  Frobel  ample  opportunity 
to  study  thoroughly  the  Swiss  reformer's  theories  and 
practices;  and  these  he  subsequently  applied  with 
even  greater  skill  than  his  master  had  done.  Schmid, 
the  German  historian  of  education,  says,  "  Frobel,  the 
pupil  of  Pestalozzi,  and  a  genius  like  his  master,  com- 
pleted the  reformer's  system;  taking  the  results  at 
which  Pestalozzi  had  arrived  through  the  necessities 
of  his  position,  Frobel  developed  the  ideas  involved 
in  them,  not  by  further  experience,  but  by  deduction 
from  the  nature  of  man,  and  thus  he  attained  to  the  . 
conception  of  true  human  development  and  to  the 
requirements  of  true  education." 

He  was  thus,  in  a  sense,  the  combined  product  of 
the  philosophy  of  Comenius  and  the  zeal  of  Pestalozzi, 
although  working  along  lines  carefully  marked  out  by 
himself.  It  does  not  detract  from  the  fame  of  Frobel 
to  say  that  most  of  the  root-ideas  of  his  kindergarten 
are  to  be  found  in  the  School  of  infancy.     Mr.  Bowen, 

1  The  kindergarten  system :  its  origin  and  development  as  seen 
in  the  life  of  Friedrich  Frobel.  By  Alexander  Bruno  Hauschmann. 
Translated  and  adapted  by  Fanny  Franks.  London :  Swan  Sonnen- 
schein  &  Co.,  1897.    pp.  xvi  +  253. 


160  COMENIUS 

who  has  given  us  one  of  the  best  expositions1  of 
Frobel' s  ideas,  pays  a  just  tribute  of  the  obligation  of 
his  master  to  the  writings  of  Pestalozzi  and  Comenius. 
He  says :  "  With  all  his  enthusiasm  for  education  and 
his  desire  to  found  it  on  a  scientific  basis,  Comenius 
had  but  little  scientific  knowledge  of  child-nature,  and 
troubled  himself  not  at  all  to  acquire  it.  He  con- 
stantly insisted,  it  is  true,  upon  the  exercise  of  the 
senses,  and  an  education  in  accordance  with  nature; 
but  his  exercise  of  the  senses  soon  reduced  itself,  in  the 
main,  to  the  use  of  pictures,  with  a  view  to  a  readier 
and  more  intelligent  acquirement  of  language;  and, 
even  in  his  ergastula  literaria,  or  literary  workshop, 
the  manual  and  other  work  introduced  was  intended 
to  aid  poor  children  in  partly  getting  their  own  living 
while  at  school,  rather  than  to  exercise  faculty ;  while 
his  '  nature  *  was  as  quaint  and  conventional  as  that 
in  a  pre-Baphaelite  picture.  None  the  less,  however, 
Comenius  was  the  true  founder  of  educational  method.7' 

There  is  entire  agreement  in  a  few  of  the  most  fun- 
damental aims  of  the  two  reformers.  Comenius,  no 
less  than  Frobel,  preached  the  gospel  of  self-activity, 
and  demanded  that  play  be  given  important  considera- 
tion in  the  training  of  the  child.  What  Comenius 
says  on  these  subjects  has  already  been  given  in  the 
exposition  of  the  School  of  infancy,  /in  his  Education 
of  man,2  Frobel  says:  "Play  is  the  purest,  most  spir- 
itual activity  of  the  child  at  this  period;  and,  at  the 
same  time,  typical  of  human  life  as  a  whole}— of  the 

1  Frobel  and  education  through  self-activity.  By  H.  Courthope 
Brown.    New  York :  Charles  Scribner's  Sons,  1897.    pp.  209. 

2  Translated  and  annotated  by  W.  N.  Hailmann.  New  York : 
D.  Appleton  &  Co.,  1887.    pp.  332. 


INFLUENCE  OF  COMENIUS  ON  EDUCATION     161 

hidden  natural  life  in  man  and  all  things.  It  gives, 
therefore,  joy,  freedom,  contentment,  inner  and  outer 
rest,  peace  with  the  world.  A  child  that  plays 
thoroughly,  with  self -active  determination,  persever- 
ingly,  until  physical  fatigue  forbids,  will  surely  be  a 
thorough,  determined  man,  capable  of  self-sacrifice  for 
the  promotion  of  the  welfare  of  himself  and  others. 
Is  not  the  most  beautiful  expression  of  child-life  at 
this  time  a  playing  child?  —  a  child  wholly  absorbed 
in  his  play?  —  a  child  that  has  fallen  asleep  while  so 
absorbed?  .  .  .  The  plays  of  the  child  contain  the 
germ  of  the  whole  life  that  is  to  follow;  for  the  man 
develops  and  manifests  himself  in  play,  and  reveals  the 
noblest  aptitudes  and  the  deepest  elements  of  his 
being." 

Frobel  joined  with  Comenius  in  dem  nil  ill  Tip  th^t  — 
women~~snall  take  a  responsible  part  in  the,  fiflpp.flt.inr> 
''  of  ihc"  uliild.  Ml1.  James  .L.  Hugnes1  says  in  this 
connection:  "The  greatest  step  made  toward  the  full 
recognition  of  woman's  individuality  and  responsi- 
bility since  the  time  of  Christ  was  made  when  Frobel 
founded  his  kindergartens  and  made  women  educators 
outside  the  home  —  educators  by  profession.  This 
momentous  reform  gave  the  first  great  impetus  to  the 
movement  in  favor  of  women's  freedom,  and  provided 
for  the  general  advance  of  humanity  to  a  higher  plane 
by  giving  childhood  more  considerate,  more  sympa- 
thetic, and  more  stimulating  teachers."  Frobel  was 
convinced  that  women  were  better  adapted  than  men 


Jor  the  early  stages  of  instruction^     He  says:  "All 
agree  that,  compared  with  the  true  mother,  the  formal 

1  Frobel' s  educational  laws  for  all  teachers.    By  James  L.  Hughes. 
New  York :  D.  Appleton  &  Co.,  1897.    pp.  296. 


162  COMENIUS 

educator  is  but  a  bungler.  But  she  must  become  con- 
scious of  her  own  aim,  and  must  learn  intelligently 
the  means  to  reach  it.  She  can  no  longer  afford  to 
squander  or  neglect  the  earliest  years  of  her  child. 
As  the  world  grows  older,  we  become  richer  in  knowl- 
edge and  art.  But  childhood  remains  short  as  before." 
In  other  important  particulars  Frobel  owed  much  to 
Comenius,  as  well  as  to  Pestalozzi.  Compare,  for 
example,  the  School  of  infancy  with  the  aims  of  the 
kindergarten^  and    the   bequests    of    the    Moravian 


reformer  will  at  once  be  apparent.  The  exaggerated 
and  unpedagogic  symbolism,  however,  with  which 
Frobel  burdened  his  otherwise  excellent  kindergarten 
system,  formed  no  part  of  his  heritage  from  Comenius. 

Herbart 

Professor  De  Garmo,1  who  has  given  us  a  most 
succinct  statement  of  Herbart's  educational  views, 
remarks,  "that  one  of  thejnain  results  of  Comenius, 
Eousseau,  andJPestalozzi  is_the  firmly  fivp.d  nnnvijjjnr^ 
thairoBservation,  or  the  use  ojLthe  senses,  and 


"general,  the  consideration  of  simple  concrete  facts  in 
every  field  of  knowledge^  is  the  sure  foundation  upon 
which  all  right  elementary,  education  rests.  This 
truth  is  now  the  acknowledged  starting-point  of  all 
scientific  methods  of  teaching.  Yet  the  fact  of  impor- 
tance of  observation  in  instruction  does  not  carry  with 
it  any  information  showing  how  the  knowledge  so 
obtained  can  be  utilized,  or  what  its  nature,  time, 
amount,   and   order  of  presentation   should   be.     In 

1  Herbart  and  the  Herbartians.    By  Charles  De  Garmo.    New 
York :  Charles  Scribner's  Sons,  1895.    pp.  268. 


1   INFLUENCE   OF   COMENIUS   ON  EDUCATION      163 

short,  it  does  not  show  how  mental  assimilation  can 
best  take  place,  or  how  the  resulting  acquisitions  can 
be  made  most  efficiently  to  influence  the  emotional  and 
volitional  sides  of  our  nature.  Perception  is,  indeed, 
the  first  stage  of  cognition,  but  its  equally  important 
correlative  is  apperception  and  assimilation.  It  is 
Herbart  and  his  successors  who  have  made  us  dis- 
tinctly conscious  of  this  fact."  There  can  be  no 
reasonable  doubt  but  that  Herbart  did  give  a  powerful 
impulse  to  the  judicious  assimilation  of  acquired 
sense-experience;  and  yet  even  here  it  is  quite  pos- 
sible to  underestimate  the  character  and  value  of  the 
nature  studies  of  Comenius  and  the  object  lessons  of 
Pestalozzi. 

Herbart,  like  Comenius,  emphasized  the  necessary 
effect  of  all  instruction  on  character.  "  The  circle  of 
thought,"  says  Herbart,  "contains  the  store  of  that 
which  by  degrees  can  mount  by  the  steps  of  interest 
to  desire,  and  then,  by  means  of  action,  to  volition. 
Further,  it  contains  the  store  upon  which  all  the 
workings  of  prudence  are  founded  —  in  it  are  the 
knowledge  and  care,  without  which  man  cannot  pur- 
sue his  aims  through  means.  The  whole  inner  activity, 
indeed,  has  its  abode  in  the  circle  of  thought.  Here 
is  found  the  initiative  life,  the  primal  energy;  here 
all  must  circulate  easily  and  freely,  everything  must 
be  in  its  place,  ready  to  be  found  and  used  at  any 
moment;  nothing  must  lie  in  the  way,  and  nothing 
like  a  heavy  load  impede  useful  activity."  Indeed, 
as  Kern  suggests,  in  Herbart's  scheme  interest  is  the 
moral  monitor  and  protector  against  the  servitude  that 
springs  from  passions  and  desires. 

The  doctrine  of  interest,  but  vaguely  suggested  by 


164  COMENIUS 

Comenius,  is  perhaps  the  most  noteworthy  contribu- 
tion of  Herbart  to  modern  pedagogy ;  but  to  summar- 
ize Herbart's  views  on  interest  would  be  to  summarize 
his  whole  theory  of  education.  He  recognizes  two 
groups  of  interests  —  intellectual  and  social.  Two 
phases  of  intellectual  interests  are  distinguished: 
(1)  empirical  interests,  or  the  pleasures  occasioned 
by  disinterested  curiosity;  (2)  speculative  interests 
occasioned  by  the  impulse  to  search  out  causal  rela- 
tions; and  (3)  aesthetic  interests  aroused  through 
beauties  in  nature,  art,  and  character.  The  social 
interests  are  likewise  threefold:  (1)  sympathetic  or 
altruistic;  (2)  social  and  fraternal;  and  (3)  religious. 
Herbart's  contribution  to  empirical  psychology, 
although  important,  was  second  to  his  application  of 
direct  pedagogic  problems  to  actual  school  practice  — 
the  working  out  of  his  doctrine  of  many-sided  interest, 
the  selection  and  adjustment  of  materials  of  instruc- 
tion, and  the  reform  of  school  government  and 
discipline.1 

1  See  Herbart's  Science  of  education.  Translated  from  the  Ger- 
man, with  a  biographical  introduction  by  Henry  M.  and  Emmie 
Felkin.    Boston :  D.  C.  Heath  &  Co.,  1895.    pp.  268. 


CHAPTER  X 

PERMANENT  INFLUENCE  OF  COMENIUS 

General  neglect  of  Comenius  during  the  eighteenth  century  — 
Causes  —  Intrenchment  of  humanism  —  Summary  of  the  perma- 
nent reforms  of  Comenius  —  Revived  interest  in  his  teachings  — 
National  Comenius  pedagogical  library  at  Leipzig  — The  Come- 
nius Society  —  Reviews  published  for  the  dissemination  of  the 
educational  doctrines  of  Comenius  —  Conquest  of  his  ideas. 

The  permanent  influence  of  Comenius  remains  to 
be  noted.  Famous  in  his  own  day;  enjoying  the 
friendship  of  great  scholars  and  the  confidence  of  royal 
personages ;  the  founder  of  numerous  school  systems ; 
the  author  of  more  than  a  hundred  books  and  treatises, 
which  were  translated  into  most  of  the  languages  of 
Europe  and  Asia,  —  the  name  of  the  great  Moravian 
reformer  was  quite  if  not  entirely  forgotten,  and  his 
writings  practically  unknown,  for  more  than  a  century 
after  his  death.  Professor  Nicholas  Murray  Butler,1 
in  likening  him  unto  the  stream  that  loses  itself  in  the 
arid  desert  and  then  reappears  with  gathered  force 
and  volume  to  lend  its  fertilizing  power  to  the  sur- 
rounding country,  says:  "Human  history  is  rich  in 
analogies  to  this  natural  phenomenon ;  but  in  Comenius 
the  history  of  education  furnishes  its  example.  The 
great  educational  revival  of  our  century,  and  particu- 
larly of  our  generation,  has  shed  the  bright  light  of 

1  The  place  of  Comenius  in  the  history  of  education.    Proceed- 
ings of  the  National  Education  Association  for  1892.    pp.  723-728. 

165 


166  COMENIUS 

scholarly  investigation  into  all  the  dark  places,  and 
to-day,  at  the  three  hundredth  anniversary  of  his 
birth,  the  fine  old  Moravian  bishop  is  being  honored 
wherever  teachers  gather  together  and  wherever  edu- 
cation is  the  theme." 

The  world,  which  usually  takes  pause  for  a  moment, 
when  a  great  man  dies,  to  seriously  consider  what 
there  was  in  the  dead  that  lifted  him  above  the  ordi- 
nary level,  took  no  such  inventory  when  the  remains 
of  Comenius  were  laid  at  rest  in  a  quiet  little  town  in 
Holland.  "The  man  whom  we  unhesitatingly  affirm," 
says  Mr.  Keatinge,  "to  be  the  broadest-minded,  the 
most  far-seeing,  the  most  comprehensive,  and  withal 
the  most  practical  of  all  writers  who  have  put  pen  to 
paper  on  the  subject  of  education;  the  man  whose 
theories  have  been  put  into  practice  in  every  school 
that  is  conducted  on  rational  principles ;  who  embodies 
the  materialistic  tendencies  of  our  *  modern  side  * 
instructors,  while  avoiding  the  narrowness  of  their 
reforming  zeal;  who  lays  stress  on  the  spiritual  aspect 
of  true  education,  while  he  realizes  the  necessity  of 
equipping  his  pupils  for  the  rude  struggle  with  nature 
and  with  fellow-men  —  Comenius,  we  say,  the  prince 
of  schoolmasters,  produced,  practically,  no  effect  on 
the  school  organization  and  educational  development 
of  the  following  century." 

The  causes  of  this  universal  neglect,  are  not  easily 
explained.  That  he  lived  most  of  his  days  in 
exile;  that  he  belonged  to  a  religious  community 
which  was  numerically  insignificant  and  which  suf- 
fered all  those  bitter  persecutions  following  in  the 
train  of  the  Thirty  Years'  War;  that  indiscretion 
entangled  him  in  certain  alleged  prophetic  revelations, 


PERMANENT  INFLUENCE   OF  COMENIUS       167 

which  subsequently  turned  out  the  baldest  impostures ; 
and,  more  important  than  all,  as  Professor  Laurie 
points  out,  that  schoolmasters  did  not  wish  to  be  dis- 
turbed by  a  man  with  new  ideas,  —  these  facts  help  to 
explain  the  universal  neglect  into  which  his  name  and 
writings  fell.  In  a  personal  letter,  Oscar  Browning 
expresses  the  belief  that  if  the  teachings  of  Comenius 
had  been  dated  a  century  earlier,  that  the  realistic 
type  of  education  might  have  been  generally  followed 
—  at  least  in  the  countries  that  had  broken  with  the 
Church  of  Rome.  As  it  was,  however,  Melanchthon, 
the  schoolmaster  of  the  Reformation,  adopted,  with 
slight  modifications,  the  humanistic  type  of  educa- 
tion. For  the  time  being,  at  least,  the  ideas  held  by 
Comenius  were  pushed  into  the  background,  and 
humanism,  already  deeply  intrenched,  dominated 
educational  practices.  Reformers  were  not  wanting, 
however,  to  champion  the  reforms  of  Comenius,  men 
like  Francke,  Rousseau,  Basedow,  Pestalozzi,  Frobel, 
and  Herbart.  But  it  remained  for  the  nineteenth  cen- 
tury to  realize,  in  considerable  measure,  the  aims  and 
aspirations  of  the  far-reaching  reforms  of  the  Moravian 
bishop. 

"There  is  nothing  startling  about  the  educational 
reforms  of  Comenius  to-day,"  says  Professor  Earl 
Barnes.  "They  are  the  commonplace  talk  of  all 
school  conventions.  But  to  see  them  when  no  one 
else  has  formulated  them,  to  enunciate  them  before  an 
audience  often  hostile,  and  to  devote  a  life  to  teaching 
them  and  working  them  out  —  this  requires  a  broad 
mind  and  something  of  the  spirit  of  the  martyr,  and 
both  these  elements  were  strong  in  Comenius." 

In  spite  of  the  neglect  into  which  the  reforms  of 


168  COMENIUS 

Coraenius  fell,  his  influence  has  been  lasting  because 
his  work  was  constructive  and  his  reforms  were  far 
reaching.  Among  the  reforms  which  he  advocated  (and 
since  incorporated  in  the  modern  educational  move- 
ment), the  following  may  be  named:  — 

1.  That  the  purpose  of  education  is  to  fit  for  com- 
plete living,  in  consequence  of  which  its  benefits  must 
be  extended  to  all  classes  of  society. 
t  2.  That  education  should  follow  the  course  and 
order  of  nature,  and  be  adapted  to  the  stages  of  mental 
development  of  the  child. 

3.  That  intellectual  progress  is  conditioned  at  every 
step  by  bodily  vigor,  and  that  to  attain  the  best  results, 
physical  exercises  must  accompany  and  condition 
mental  training. 

4.  That  children  must  first  be  trained  in  the 
mother-tongue,  and  that  all  the  elementary  knowledge 
should  be  acquired  through  that  medium. 

5.  That  nature  study  must  be  made  the  basis  of  all 
primary  instruction,  so  that  the  child  may  exercise  his 
senses  and  be  trained  to  acquire  knowledge  at  first 
hand. 

6.  That  the  child  must  be  wisely  trained  during  its 
earliest  years,  for  which  purpose  mothers  must  be 
trained  for  the  high  and  holy  mission  of  instructing 
little  children,  and  women  generally  be  given  more 
extended  educational  opportunities. 

•  7.  That  the  school  course  must  be  enriched  by  the 
addition  of  such  useful  studies  as  geography  and 
history. 
.  8.  That  the  subjects  of  study  must  be  so  correlated 
and  coordinated  that  they  may  form  a  common  unit 
of  thought. 


PERMANENT  INFLUENCE   OF   COMENIUS        169 

1      9.    That  teachers  must  be  specially  trained. 
*  10.    That  schools  must  be  more  rationally  graded 
and  better  supervised. 

11.  That  languages  must  be  taught  as  "living 
organic  wholes  fitted  for  the  purposes  of  life,  and  not 
as  the  lifeless  tabulations  of  the  grammarians." 

It  was  the  opinion  of  Mr.  Quick  that  the  most 
hopeful  sign  of  the  improvement  of  education  was  the 
rapid  advance  in  the  last  thirty  years  of  the  fame  of 
Comenius,  and  the  growth  of  a  large  literature  about 
the  man  and  his  ideas.  The  revival  of  Comenian 
ideas  really  dates  from  the  beginning  of  the  present 
century,  when  Germany,  crushed  and  dismembered, 
looked  to  her  schools  as  the  surest  means  of  regaining 
fallen  glory;  so  that  the  battle_xtf  Jena  may  be  given... 
as  the  date  of  this  awakened  interest  in  the  reforms  of 
the  Moravian  educator.  This  interest  culminated  in 
the  foundation  of  the  great  national  Comenius  peda- 
gogical library  (Comenius-Stiftung)  at  Leipzig,  in 
1871.  It  was  founded  by  a  band  of  enthusiastic  dis- 
ciples of  Comenius,  of  whom  Julius  Beeger  was  the 
foremost;  and,  although  it  numbered  but  2642  vol- 
umes at  the  end  of  the  first  year,  the  interest  in  the 
movement  has  been  so  great  that  it  now  numbers 
over  70,000  volumes,  and  constitutes  the  largest 
single  collection  of  pedagogical  books  in  the  world. 
The  books  are  classified  in  56  departments,  the  most 
important  of  which  are :  encyclopaedias  of  pedagogy, 
complete  collections  of  the  writings  of  standard  edu- 
cational writers,  sources  of  history  of  education, 
general  works  on  the  history  of  education,  histories  of 
special  periods  in  education,  histories  of  education  in 
different  countries,  histories  of  individual  educational 


170  COMENIUS 

institutions,  educational  biographies,  works  on  sys- 
tematic'pedagogy,  physical  education,  etc.  The  library 
covers  every  department  of  educational  thought,  and 
is  especially  strong  in  the  literature  relating  to  the 
elementary  schools  of  Germany.  The  privileges  of 
the  library  are  freely  open  to  all  students  of  educa- 
tion. The  library  is  under  the  control  of  the  Leipzig 
teachers'  association,  and  is  sustained  in  part  by  the 
association  and  in  part  by  appropriations  from  the 
city  of  Leipzig  and  the  kingdom  of  Saxony.1  What 
more  appropriate  memorial  to  the  long  and  devoted 
life  of  Comenius  to  the  cause  of  education  could  be 
desired,  and  what  stronger  evidence  of  the  permanent 
influence  of  his  work  and  worth. 

A  second  recent  manifestation  of  the  permanency  of 
the  Moravian  educator's  influence  is  the  Comenius 
Society  (Comenius-Gesellschaft),  with  headquarters  in 
Germany,  and  numbering  among  its  members  most  of 
the  leaders  in  educational  thought  in  the  world.  It 
was  organized  in  1891.  The  objects  of  the  society  are 
(1)  to  spread  the  living  influence  of  the  spirit  of 
Comenius  and  the  men  who  have  represented  cognate 
reforms;  (2)  to  work  toward  an  increased  knowledge 
of  the  past  and  a  healthy  development  of  the  future 
on  the  principle  of  mutual  union  and  forbearance,  by 
means  of  the  cultivation  of  the  literature  which  has 
grown  out  of  that  spirit;  and  (3)  to  prepare  the  way 
for  a  reform  of  education  and  instruction  on  the  lines 
laid  down  by  Comenius.     In  order  to  realize  these 

1  An  excellent  account  of  the  national  Comenius  pedagogical 
library  will  be  found  in:  Die  padagogischen  Bibliotheken,  Schul- 
museen  und  standigen  Lehrmittelausstellungen  der  Welt.  Von 
Julius  Beeger.    Leipzig :  Zangenberg  &  Himly,  1892.    pp.  84. 


PERMANENT  INFLUENCE  OF  COMENIUS        171 

objects,  the  society  further  proposes  (1)  the  publica- 
tion of  the  more  important  writings  and  letters  of 
Comenius  and  his  associates ;  (2)  inquiry  into  the  his- 
tory and  dogmas  of  the  old  evangelical  congregations 
(Waldenses,  Bohemian  Brethren,  Swiss  Brethren, 
etc.),  chiefly  by  publishing  the  original  sources  from 
their  history;  and  (3)  the  collection  of  books,  manu- 
scripts, and  documents  which  are  important  for  the 
history  of  the  above  objects. 

The  membership  of  the  society,  while  overwhelm- 
ingly German,  includes  a  considerable  number  from 
Austria-Hungary,  Holland,  Great  Britain,  the  United 
States,  Kussia,  Sweden,  Norway,  Italy,  Switzerland, 
France,  Greece,  Belgium,  and  Denmark.  The  society 
inspired  the  numerous  celebrations  in  commemoration 
of  the  three  hundredth  anniversary  of  the  birth  of 
Comenius  (March  28,  1892).  These  celebrations,  held 
at  most  of  the  educational  centres  in  the  Old  World, 
and  at  a  number  of  places  in  the  New,  revived  the 
memory  of  Comenius,  and  brought  his  teachings  to 
thousands  of  teachers  who  had  known  him  before 
only  as  a  name. 

The  society  began  in  1892  the  publication  of  a  high- 
grade  review,  —  Monatshefte  der  Comenius-Gesellschaft, 
—  which  is  published  bi-monthly  at  Berlin,  and  is 
edited  by  the  distinguished  Comenius  scholar,  Dr. 
Ludwig  Keller.  This  review  has  most  creditably 
carried  out  the  purposes  of  the  society  in  publishing 
a  wealth  of  original  material  on  Comenius  and  his  con- 
temporaries, that  hitherto  has  been  altogether  inacces- 
sible to  the  student  of  the  history  of  education.  The 
society  also  publishes  a  bi-monthly  educational  journal 
for  the  use  of  teachers  in  the  elementary  schools  of 


172  COMENIUS 

Germany  especially  interested  in  the  doctrines  of 
Coinenius.'  It  is  entitled  Comenius-Blatter  fur  Volks- 
erziehung,  and  is  also  published  at  Berlin  and  edited 
by  Dr.  Keller.  The  propaganda  of  the  Comenius 
Society  has  done  much  to  restore  this  worthy  to  the 
place  he  so  justly  merits  —  the  foremost  educational 
reformer  of  modern  times. 

These  are  some  of  the  agencies  employed  by  the 
Comenius  Society  in  opening  up  an  appreciation  of 
this  great  man,  who,  "born  in  Moravia,  working 
amongst  Czechs,  Germans,  English,  Dutch,  Swedes, 
and  Hungarians,  with  friends  in  France  and  Italy,  has 
won  by  his  thought,  as  well  as  by  his  life,  a  universal 
significance.  As  philosopher  and  divine,  in  union 
with  Andrea?,  Dury,  Milton,  and  others,  he  devoted  his 
life  to  a  work  of  peace.  He  placed  the  weal  of  man, 
as  he  termed  it,  above  the  respect  for  languages, 
persons,  and  sects;  thus  his  energies  were  directed 
toward  restraining  the  wrangling  people,  churches, 
and  classes  from  the  violent  utterance  of  their  differ- 
ences, and  leading  them  on  the  ground  of  early  Chris- 
tian views  to  mutual  peace  and  forbearance.  As 
educationalist,  insjaic&d  by  Bacon,  he  successfully 
asserted  the  claims  of  experimental  science  in  the 
elementary  schools  of  his  time,  placed  the  mother- 
tongue  on  the  list  of  subjects  of  instruction,  and 
included  in  the  conception  of  the  school  the  idea  of 
physical  culture.  By  his  demand  for  education  of  all 
children,  including  girls,  who  till  then  had  been 
neglected,  he  became  one  of  the  fathers  of  modern 
elementary  education." 


APPENDICES 

I.     TABLE   OF   DATES 
(a)  Pertaining  to  the  Life  of  Comenius 

1592.  Born  at  Nivnitz,  Moravia,  March  28th. 

1604.  Death  of  his  father  and  mother. 

.  Entered  the  elementary  school  at  Strasnitz. 

1608.  Entered  the  gymnasium  at  Prerau. 

1611.  Matriculated  in  the  college  at  Herborn. 

1613.  Matriculated  in  the  university  at  Heidelberg. 

1614.  Appointed  teacher  in  the  Moravian  school  at  Prerau. 
1616.  Ordained  as  a  minister,  April  29th. 

1618.  Called  to  the  pastorate  of  the  church  at  Eulneck ;  also 
superintendent  of  schools. 

1624.    Marriage  to  Elizabeth  Cyrrill. 

.  Driven  into  the  Bohemian  mountains  by  religious  per- 
secutions. 

1627.  Banished  from  his  native  country. 

1628.  Fled  to  Poland ;  given  charge  of  the  gymnasium  at  Lissa. 
1632.   Consecrated  as  a  bishop,  October  6th. 

1641.  Called  to  England,  arriving  there  September  22d. 

1642.  Left  London,  June  10th,  for  Sweden. 
.    Settled  at  Elbing,  Prussia,  in  October. 

1648.  Returned  to  Lissa  ;  death  of  his  wife  ;  chosen  president 

of  the  council  (senior  bishop),  of  the  Moravian  Church. 

1649.  Re-married,  to  Elizabeth  Gaiusowa. 

1650.  Took  charge  of  the  schools  at  Saros-Patak,  Hungary,  in 

May. 
1654.    Returned  to  Lissa. 
1656.    Lissa  burned  ;  flight  to  Silesia. 

.    Settled  in  Amsterdam. 

1670.    Died  at  Amsterdam,  November  15th  ;  buried  at  Naarden 

(Holland),  November  22d. 
173 


174  APPENDICES 


(b)  Principal  Writings  of  Comenius 

1616.  Grammaticce  facilioris  prcecepta  (Simple  grammatical 

rules) .     Prague. 

1617.  Listowe  do  nebe  (Cries  of  the  oppressed  poor).    Olmiitz. 

1622.  De    Christina  perfectione    (On    Christian    perfection). 

Prague. 

1623.  Labyrint  sv'eta  a  rdj  srdce,  to  jest  (Labyrinth  of  the  world 

and  paradise  of  the  heart) .     Lissa. 
1631.  Janua  linguarum  reserata  (Gate  of  languages  unlocked). 
Lissa. 

1633.  Informatorium  der  Mutter-Schul  (School  of  infancy). 

Lissa. 

.   Atrium  linguce  Latince  (On  the  study  of  Latin  style). 

Lissa. 

1634.  Physical  ad  lumen  divinum  reformatce  synopsis  (Physics 

remodelled  in  accordance  with  divine  light).     Leipzig. 
1638.    Prodromus  pansophice  (Fragment  of  the  Great  didactic. 

Published  in  London,  1639,  by  Hartlib).     Lissa. 
1641.    Via  lucis  (The  way  of  light).     Amsterdam. 
1643.   Pansophice  diatyphosis,  inconographica,  et  orthographica 

(Published  in  England  in  1650  with  the  title :  A  pattern 

of  universal  knowledge) .     Danzig. 

1647.  Vestibulum  Latince  linguce  rerum  (Vestibule  of  the  Latin 

language) .    Lissa. 

1648.  Linguarum  methodus  novissima  (New  method  of  language 

study).     Lissa. 

1650.  Lux  in  tenebris  (Light  in  darkness  —  on  prophetic  vis- 
ions).    Amsterdam. 

.   Scholce pansophicce  delincetio  (Plan  of  a  pansophic  school) . 

Saros-Patak. 

1656.  Schola  ludus  (School  dramas).     Saros-Patak. 

1657.  Orbis  sensualium  pictus  (The  world  illustrated).    Nu- 

remberg. 
.    Opera  didactica  omnia  (Complete  didactic  works  in  four 

volumes) .     Amsterdam. 
1660.   Historia  fratrum  Bohemorum  (History  of  the  Bohemian 

brethren) .     Amsterdam. 


APPENDICES  175 

.    Cartesius  cum  sua  naturali  philosophic/,  a  mechanicis 

eversus  (Descartes  and  his  natural  philosophy  over- 
thrown by  arguments  derived  from  mechanical  princi- 
ples).    Amsterdam. 

.   Be  natura  caloris  etfrigoris  (On  the  nature  of  heat  and 

cold).     Amsterdam. 

1668.    Unum  necessarium  (The  one  thing  needful).  Amsterdam. 


II.     SELECT  BIBLIOGKAPHY 

(a)   Writings  of  Comenius 

1.  The  great  didactic.     Translated  with  introductions,  bio- 

graphical and  historical,  by  M.  W.  Keatinge.  London : 
Adam  and  Charles  Black.     1896.    pp.  468. 

This  first  complete  translation  of  Comenius'  most 
philosophic  work  is  admirably  done.  The  biographical 
introduction  is  given  ninety-eight  pages,  and  the  his- 
torical introduction  fifty  pages.  These  are  both  inter- 
esting and  critical.  The  book  unfortunately  is  not 
indexed. 

2.  The  school  of  infancy :  an  essay  on  the  education  of  youth 

during  the  first  six  years.  Edited  with  an  introduction 
and  notes  by  Will  S.  Monroe.  Boston :  D.  C.  Heath  &  Co. 
1896.    London  :  Isbister  &  Co.    1897.    pp.  xvi+99. 

There  are  numerous  foot-notes,  intended  to  show  the 
origin  of  Comenius'  educational  ideals  and  the  influence 
of  his  writings  on  later  educators.  Collateral  reading 
references  are  given  at  the  end  of  each  chapter,  and  in 
the  appendix  there  is  a  reasonably  complete  bibliography 
of  Comenius  literature. 

3.  The  orbis  pictus.      Translated    into  English    by  Charles 

Hoole.  London :  John  and  Benj.  Sprint,  1728.  Syra- 
cuse, N.Y.:  C.  W.  Bardeen.     1887.     pp.  100. 

This  is  a  very  satisfactory  reproduction  of  the  famous 
Hoole  translation  by  the  photographic  process.  Some  of 
the  cuts  are  indistinct,  but  Mr.  Bardeen  wisely  refrained 
from  retouching  them,  preferring  occasional  indistinct- 
ness to  modern  tampering  with  the  originals. 


176  APPENDICES 

4.  John  Amos  Comenius :  his  life  and  educational  work.  By 
S.  S.  Laurie.     Boston  :  Willard  Small.    1885.    pp.  229. 

The  introduction  (pp.  1-16)  gives  the  effect  of  the  Re- 
naissance on  education ;  a  brief  but  appreciative  sketch 
of  the  life  of  Comenius  follows  (pp.  17-64)  ;  and  the 
remainder  of  the  book  is  given  to  an  exposition  of  his 
writings. 

6.  Grosse  Unterrichtslehre.  Aus  dem  Lateinischen  ubersetzt 
mit  Einleitungen  und  Anmerkungen  versehen  von  Julius 
Beeger  und  Franz  Zoubek.  Leipzig:  Siegismund  und 
Volkening.     No  date.     pp.  clxxvii+280. 

The  sketch  of  the  life  of  Comenius  (176  pp.)  is  by 
Zoubek,  and  the  translation  of  the  Great  didactic  from 
the  Latin  into  German  by  Beeger. 

6.  Ausgewahlte  Schriften.     Aus  dem  Lateinischen  ubersetzt 

und  mit  Einleitung  und  Anmerkungen  versehen  von 
Julius  Beeger  und  J.  Leutbecher.  Leipzig :  Siegismund 
und  Volkening.     No  date.     pp.  xvi+359. 

A  collection  of  the  miscellaneous  educational  writings 
of  Comenius,  including  the  School  of  infancy,  Paneger- 
sia,  and  fragments  of  the  Pansophy. 

7.  Grosse  Unterrichtslehre.    Mit  einer  Einleitung:  J.  Come- 

nius, sein  Leben  und  Wirken.  Einleitung,  Ubersetzung 
und  Coinmentar  von  Gustav  Adolph  Lindner.  Wien 
und  Leipzig :  A.  Pichler's  Witwe  und  Sohn.  1892.  pp. 
lxxxix+311. 

Perhaps  the  best  German  edition  of  the  Great  didactic. 
The  biographical  sketch  is  less  valuable  than  the  one  in 
the  edition  by  Beeger  and  Zoubek  ;  but  the  annotations 
on  the  Great  didactic,  covering  about  forty  pages,  give  it 
special  pedagogic  value. 

8.  Ueber  " Eins  ist  noth"   ("Unum  necessarium").     Von 

Joh.  Amos  Comenius.  Znaim :  Fournier  und  Haber- 
ler.     1892.    pp.  22. 

A  convenient  edition  of  Comenius1  pathetic  swan  song, 
"  The  one  thing  needful." 


APPENDICES  177 


(b)   Biographical  and  Critical 

1.  Educational  Beview.   Nicholas  Murray  Butler,  editor.   New 

York :  Educational  Review  Publishing  Co.   March,  1892. 
Vol.  III.    pp.  209-236. 

The  issue  for  March,  1892,  is  a  Comenius  number.  It 
contains  a  brief  on  Comenius  by  Professor  Butler  (pp. 
209-211);  "The  place  of  Comenius  in  the  history  of 
education,"  by  Professor  Laurie  (pp.  211-223)  ;  "The 
text-books  of  Comenius,"  by  Mr.  C.  W.  Bardeen  (pp.  223- 
336)  ;  and  "The  permanent  influence  of  Comenius,"  by 
Professor  Hanus  (pp.  226-236). 

2.  Proceedings  of  the  National  Educational  Association  for 

1892.     pp.  703-728. 

The  department  of  superintendence  of  the  National 
Educational  Association,  in  connection  with  the  meeting 
at  Brooklyn,  February  16-18,  1892,  held  exercises  in 
commemoration  of  the  three-hundredth  anniversary  of 
the  birth  of  Comenius,  with  the  following  addresses : 
"Private  life  and  personal  characteristics,"  Dr.  John 
Max  Hark  (pp.  703-711)  ;  "Text-books  of  Comenius," 
Superintendent  William  H.  Maxwell  (pp.  712-723)  ; 
"Place  of  Comenius  in  the  history  of  education,"  Pro- 
fessor Nicholas  Murray  Butler  (pp.  723-728). 

3.  Essays  on  educational  reformers.   By  Robert  Hebert  Quick. 

New  York:  D.  Appleton  &  Co.,  1893.     pp.  119-171. 

One  of  the  best  brief  critical  surveys  of  the  writings 
of  Comenius  and  written  in  the  fascinating  style  of  the 
genial  Quick. 

4.  History  of  pedagogy.     By  Gabriel  Compayre\     Translated 

by  W.  H.  Payne.     Boston :   D.  C.  Heath  &  Co.    1886. 
pp.  122-136. 

A  brief  summary  of  Comenius'  most  important  contribu- 
tions to  primary  instruction. 

5.  The  educational  ideal :  an  outline  of  its  growth  in  modern 

times.     By  James  Phinney  Munroe.    Boston  :  D.  C.  Heath 
&  Co.     1895.     pp.  68-94. 
A  concise  and  critical  survey  of  the  reforms  of  Comenius 

N 


178  APPENDICES 

and  the  other  realists.  After  Quick,  the  best  brief  survey 
of  the  modern  movement ;  and  at  many  points  it  supple- 
ments Quick. 
6.  Barnard's  American  Journal  of  Education.  Published  at 
Hartford  by  the  editor,  Henry  Barnard.  June,  1858. 
Vol.  V.    pp.  257-298. 

Dr.  Barnard  was  one  of  the  earliest  to  call  attention  to 
the  pedagogic  value  of  Comenius'  writings.  This  transla- 
tion from  Karl  von  Raumer's  Geschichte  der  Padagogik 
was,  up  to  the  time  Professor  Laurie's  book  appeared, 
the  only  comprehensive  study  of  Comenius  in  English. 
Raumer,  however,  is  not  an  impartial  critic  of  the  realists. 
The  history  of  the  unitas  fratrum.  By  Edmund  de  Schwei- 
nitz.  Bethlehem,  Penn.  :  Moravian  Publication  Office. 
1885.    pp.  693. 

An  authoritative  account  of  the  Moravian  Brethren  and 
of  Comenius'  relation  to  the  same. 

8.  Monatshefte  der   Comenius-Gesellschaft.      Ludwig  Kellar, 

editor.      Berlin:   Hermann  Heyfelder.      1892-1900.      10 
volumes. 

A  high  grade  bi-monthly  review  published  by  the 
Comenius  Society  in  the  interest  of  education  generally, 
and  in  particular  of  the  views  held  by  the  Moravian  re- 
former. The  review  is  a  mine  of  rich  material  on  Come- 
nius and  his  contempories. 

9.  Leben  und  JSchicksale  des  Johann  Amos  Comenius.     Von 

Anton  Vrbka.     Znaim :  Fournier  und  Haberler.     1892. 
pp.  160. 

The  best  brief  German  life  of  Comenius.  It  is  accurate 
and  sympathetic,  and  contains  17  wood-cuts. 

10.  ilber  des  Johann  Amos  Comenius  Leben  und  Wirksamkeit. 

Von  Anton  Gindely.     Znaim:   Fournier  und  Haberler. 
1893.     pp.  109. 

Another  brief  German  work.  Professor  Gindely  is  a 
Roman  Catholic,  and  while  he  writes  of  Comenius  with 
less  enthusiasm,  he  presents  his  life  with  critical  fairness. 

11.  Johann  Amos  Comenius:  sein  Leben  und  seine  Schriften. 

Von  Johann  Kvacsala.    Berlin :  Julius  Klinkhardt.     1892. 
pp.  480  +  89. 


APPENDICES  179 

This,  so  far  as  I  know,  is  the  most  comprehensive  life 
of  Comenius  to  be  found  in  any  language  ;  but  at  many 
points  it  is  unnecessarily  tedious  and  diffuse. 

12.  Bein's  Encyclopadisches  Handbuch  der  Padagogik.    Lan- 

gensalza:  Hermann  Beyer  und  Sonne.  Vol.  I.  pp. 
558-569. 

An  excellent  brief  article  by  A.  Nebe.  An  article  on 
the  Comenius-Stiftung  follows  (pp.  569-573). 

13.  Der  Anschauungsunterricht  in  der  deutschen  Schule  von 

Amos  Comenius  bis  zur  Gegenwart.  Von  Gottlieb  Gus- 
tav  Deussing.  Frankenberg:  C.  C.  Rossberg.  1884. 
pp.  66. 

A  historical  and  critical  dissertation  on  the  growth  of 
object  teaching  and  nature  study. 

14.  Die  padagogischen  Grundgedanken  des  Amos  Comenius. 

Von  Hermann  Gottsched.    Magdeburg :  A.  und  R.  Faber. 
1879.     pp.  64. 
A  dissertation  on  Comenius'  philosophy  of  education. 

15.  Comenius:    ein   Systematiker   in   der   Padagogik.      Von 

Walter  Muller.  Dresden :  Bleyl  und  Kaemmer.  1887. 
pp.  50. 

A  dissertation  on  the  contributions  of  Comenius  to 
systematic  pedagogy  and  school  systems. 

16.  Die  Padagogik  des  Spaniers  Johann  Ludwig   Vives  und 

sein  Einfluss  auf  Joh.  Amos  Comenius.  Erlangen :  Junge 
und  Sohn.    1890.     pp.  69. 

Indicates  traces  of  the  educational  theories  of  Comenius 
in  the  writings  of  Vives. 

17.  Die  Didaktik  Basedows  im   Vergleiche  zur  Didaktik  des 

Comenius.  Von  Petru  Garbovicianu.  Bucharest :  Carol 
Gobi.     1887.    pp.  82. 

The  influence  of  the  Great  didactic  of  Comenius  on 
Basedow  and  his  institution  is  pointed  out. 

18.  Schmidt's  Encyclopadie  des   gesammten  Erziehungs  und 

Unterrichtswesen.  Gotha:  Besser.  1876.  Vol.  I.  pp. 
941-951. 

The  article  is  by  G.  Baur.  It  is  less  comprehensive, 
although  more  sympathetic,  than  the  article  in  Raumer's 
Geschichte  der  Padagogik. 


180  APPENDICES 

19.  Buisson's  Dictionnaire  de  pedagogie  et  d' 'instruction  pri- 
maire.  Paris :  Hanchette  et  Cie.  1887.  Vol  I.  Part  I. 
pp.  421-427. 

Three  brief  but  discriminating  articles.  The  first,  on 
the  life  of  Conienius,  by  C.  Progler  (pp.  421-423);  the 
second,  on  the  pedagogical  writings  of  Comenius,  by  Fer- 
dinand Buisson  (pp.  423-426)  ;  the  third,  on  the  perma- 
nent influences  of  Comenius,  by  A.  Daguet  (pp.  426-427). 


INDEX 


Alsted,  John  H.,  43. 

Andrese,  John  Valentine,  85. 

Aquaviva,  3. 

Aquinas,  Thomas,  7. 

Aristotle,  Politics,  2 ;  philosophy  of,  7. 

Arithmetic,  116. 

Arts,  99. 

Ascham,  Eoger,  on  humanism,  12 ;  the 

Scholemaster,  13. 
Atrium,  65, 129. 

Bacon,  Francis,  dangers  of  science,  22 ; 
views  on  education,  23-28 ;  criticisms 
on  English  education,  56  ;  education 
according  to  nature,  148. 

Bardeen,  C.  "W.,  editor  of  Orbis  pictus, 
175  ;  text-book  of  Comenius,  177. 

Barnard,  Henry,  contributions  to  the 
literature  of  Comenius,  178. 

Barnes,  Earl,  on  the  reforms  of  Come- 
nius, 167. 

Basedow,  Johann  Bernhard,  educa- 
tional theories  and  labors,  149-153. 

Bateus,  William,  the  Janua,  36,  125. 

Baur,  G.,  sketch  of  Comenius,  179. 

Beeger,  Julius,  relation  to  the  Come- 
nius-Stiftung,  169  ;  translation  of  the 
writings  of  Comenius,  176. 

Benham,  Daniel,  translation  of  School 
of  infancy,  110. 

Bibliography  of  Comenius,  177-180. 

Blodgett,  James  H.,  call  of  Comenius 
to  Harvard,  81. 

Bowen,  H.  Courthope,  relation  of 
Frobel  to  Comenius,  159. 

Browning,  Oscar,  on  humanism,  1 ;  on 
the  study  of  Latin,  4. 

Bruni,  Leonardo,  an  early  humanist,  8. 

Buisson,  Ferdinand,  Vives  on  pauper- 
ism, 18 ;  the  pedagogical  writings  of 
Comenius,  180. 

Butler,  Nicholas  Murray,  forerunners 


of  Comenius,  15  ;  meaning  of  infancy, 
86 ;  permanent  influence  of  Come- 
nius, 165,  177. 

Caesar,  Commentaries,  2. 

Campanella,  Thomas,  on  study  of 
nature,  35. 

Comenius,  John  Amos,  forerunners, 
15 ;  relation  to  Vives,  16 ;  agree- 
ment with  Bacon,  23  ;  influenced  by 
Eatke,  28 ;  obligations  to  Bateus,  36 ; 
birth  at  Nivnitz,  38 ;  ancestry,  39 ; 
classical  training  at  Prerau,  40 ; 
studies  at  Herborn,  42 ;  matricula- 
tion at  Heidelberg,  44 ;  teacher  in  an 
elementary  school,  44 ;  ordination  as 
a  minister,  45 ;  exile  in  the  Bohe- 
mian mountains,  46 ;  flight  from  Bo- 
hemia, 47 ;  literary  connections,  48 ; 
first  call  to  Sweden,  49  ;  call  to  Eng- 
land, 53  ;  English  friends,  54 ;  failure 
of  English  schemes,  55 ;  second  call 
to  Sweden,  56 ;  relations  with  Lewis 
de  Geer,  57 ;  location  at  Elbing, 
60 ;  ordination  as  senior  bishop  of 
the  Moravian  Brethren,  61  ;  eccle- 
siastical ministrations,  62 ;  call  to 
Hungary,  63 ;  organization  of  the 
schools  at  Saros-Patak,  64 ;  return  to 
Poland,  69  ;  flight  to  Amsterdam,  71 ; 
complete  edition  of  his  works,  72 ; 
death  at  Amsterdam,  76 ;  burial  at 
Naarden,  76 ;  marriage  and  children, 
77 ;  alleged  call  to  presidency  of 
Harvard  College,  78  ;  portraits,  81 ; 
the  Great  didactic,  83-108;  the 
School  of  infancy,  109-122;  the 
Janua,  123-129;  the  Atrium  and 
the  Vestibulum,  129-139  ;  the  Orbis 
pictus,  180-138;  Methodus  novis- 
sima,  138-141 ;  influence  on  modern 
educators,   142;    on  Francke,    143- 


181 


182 


INDEX 


146  ;  on  Rousseau,  146-149  ;  on  Base- 
dow, 149-153  ;  on  Pestalozzi,  153-158 ; 
on  Frobel,  158-162  ;  on  Herbart,  162- 
164 ;  permanent  influence,  165-171 ; 
bibliography,  177-180. 

Comenius-Blatter,  172. 

Comenius-Gesellscbaft,  170. 

Comenius-Stiftung,  169. 

Compayre,  Gabriel,  the  Orbis  pictus, 
137  ;  sketch  of  Comenius,  177. 

Cordier,  Maturin,  condition  of  educa- 
tion in  France  in  the  16th  century, 
4. 

Daguet,  A.,  sketch  of  Comenius,  180. 

Davidson,  Thomas,  relation  of  Rous- 
seau to  Comenius,  146. 

De  Garmo,  Charles,  Frobel  and  Come- 
nius, 162. 

De  Geer,  Lawrence,  aid  to  Comenius, 
71. 

De  Geer,  Lewis,  patron  of  Comenius, 
57. 

De  Schweinitz,  Edmund,  account  of 
the  Vhitas  fratrum,  178. 

Discipline  of  schools,  89,  106-108. 

Dunster,  Henry,  president  of  Harvard 
College,  78. 

Durie,  John,  connection  with  Come- 
nius, 54. 

Elbing,  the  Prussian  home  of  Comenius, 

60. 
fimile,  146. 
Erasmus,  on  classical  learning,  8,  24. 

Fables,  11T. 

Fiske,  John,  meaning  of  infancy,  86. 

Food  of  children,  116. 

Francke,  August  Hermann,  studies  at 
Kiel  and  Leipzig,  143;  organization 
of  the  Pfedagogium  at  Halle,  144; 
attitude  toward  classical  learning, 
145. 

Frobel,  Friedrich,  obligations  to  Come- 
nius, 158;  studies  with  Pestalozzi, 
159;  views  on  the  education  of 
women,  161. 

Galileo,  opposed  by  the  humanists,  9. 
Geography,  116,  138. 
Gindely,  Anton,  life  of  Comenius,  178. 
Girls,  education  of,  88. 


Gotha,  Ratke's  experiment  at,  31. 
Great  didactic,  36,  83-108. 
Groos,  Karl,  on  play,  118. 

Hall,  G.  Stanley,  value  of  the  Orbispic- 
tus,  137 ;  influence  of  Pestalozzi,  156. 

Hanus,  Paul  H.,  call  of  Comenius  to 
Harvard  College,  79  ;  correlation,  97  ; 
permanent  influence  of  Comenius, 
177. 

Hark,  John  Max,  personal  character- 
istics of  Comenius,  177. 

Harris,  William  T.,  126. 

Hartlib,  Samuel,  account  of,  51-54. 

Harvard  College,  alleged  call  of  Come- 
nius to  the  presidency  of,  78-83. 

Heidelberg,  matriculation  of  Comenius 
at  the  university,  44. 

Henry  VIII,  relations  with  Vives,  19. 

Herbart,  Johann  Friedrich,  obligations 
to  Comenius,  162 ;  effect  of  instruc- 
tion on  character,  163 ;  doctrine  of 
interest,  164. 

Herborn,  studies  of  Comenius  at,  42. 

History,  116. 

Hoole,  Charles,  editor  of  the  Orbis 
pictus,  133,  177. 

Hughes,  James  L.,  Frobel  and  the 
education  of  women,  161. 

Hughes,  Thomas,  account  of  Loyola, 
5. 

Humanism,  1-14. 

Hus,  John,  first  bishop  of  the  Moravian 
Brethren,  38. 

Infancy,  meaning  of,  86;  Comenius' 

School  of  infancy,  103,  109-122. 
Interest,  doctrine  of,  163. 

Janua,  of  Bateus,  87 ;  of  Comenius, 
65,  125-129. 

Jena,  relations  to  Ratke,  29 ;  pedagogi- 
cal seminary,  145. 

Jesuits,  the  Ratio  studiorum  of,  5 ; 
devotion  to  Latin  eloquence,  7. 

Justinus,  Laurentius,  bishop  of  the 
Moravian  Brethren,  61. 

Kant,  Immanuel,  on  the  labors  of  Base- 
dow, 152. 

Keatinge,  M.  W.,  quoted,  89,  57 ;  edi- 
tion of  the  Great  didactic,  84, 
175. 


INDEX 


183 


Keller,  Ludwig,  editor  of  Monatshefte 

der     Comenius  Gesellschafl,    170, 

178. 
Kindergarten,  158. 
Komensky,    Martin,    father    of  John 

Amos  Comenius,  38. 
Kvacsala,  Johann,  sketch  of  Comenius, 

178. 

Language,  100,  123-141. 

Latin,  schools,  105 ;  study  of,  2. 

Laurie,  S.  S.,  quoted,  137;  edition  of 
the  Great  didactic,  176;  place  of 
Comenius  in  the  history  of  educa- 
tion, 177. 

Leipzig,  study  of  pedagogy  at  the  uni- 
versity, 145 ;  national  pedagogical 
library,  169. 

Lindner,  G.  A.,  edition  of  the  Great 
didactic,  176. 

Luther,  Martin,  89. 

Magnolia  of  Cotton  Mather,  78. 

Masson,  David,  quoted,  52. 

Mather,  Cotton,  call  of  Comenius  to 
Harvard,  78. 

Maxwell,  William  H.,  text-books  of 
Comenius,  134,  177. 

Melanchthon,  Philip,  on  classical  learn- 
ing, 9,  24. 

Mental  training,  115-120. 

Methods  of  instruction,  97-103. 

Methodus  novissima,  138-141. 

Monatshefte  der  Comenius-Gesell- 
schaft,   171,   178. 

Monroe,  Will  S.,  call  of  Comenius  to 
Harvard  College,  81 ;  edition  of  the 
School  of  infancy,  110,  175. 

Montaigne,  on  humanism,  11. 

Moral  training,  101, 120. 

Moravian  Brethren,  38. 

Mulcaster,  Kichard,  on  humanism, 
13. 

Miiller,  Joseph,  bibliography  of  Come- 
nius, 110. 

Munroe,  James  P.,  on  Eabelais,  10; 
sketch  of  Comenius,  177. 

Music,  119. 

Naarden,  burial  place  of  Comenius,  76. 
Naturalism,  1. 

Nature,  education  according  to,  90- 
97. 


Nivnitz,     birthplace     of    Comenius, 

38. 
Nursing  of  children,  114. 

Orbis  pictus,  69,  130-138. 
Oxenstiern,  Axel,  33,  58,  62. 
Oxford,  university  of,  63. 

Psedagogium  at  Halle,  144. 

Pansophia,  51,  53,  64. 

Paulsen,  Friedrich,  on  European  uni- 
versities, 3. 

Pestalozzi,  anticipated  by  Comenius, 
116 ;  influenced  by  the  ftmile,  153 ; 
domestic  education,  154 ;  study  of 
nature,  156 ;  geography,  157. 

Philanthropinum  of  Basedow,  152. 

Physical  training,  113-115. 

Pictures,  use  of,  98. 

Play,  160. 

Portraits  of  Comenius,  81. 

Private  education,  87. 

Purpose  of  education,  85-89. 

Quick,  Robert  Hebert,  quoted,  9,  169  ; 

estimate  of  Comenius,  177. 
Quintilian,  99. 

Eabelais,  on  humanism,  10. 
Ratio  studiorum  of  the  Jesuits,  5. 
Eatke,  Wolfgang,  28-35,  59. 
Eaumer,    Karl    von,    5,     6,    16,     17, 

128. 
Eealism,  1. 

Eein,  Wilhelm,  145,  179. 
Eeligious  training,  102,  120-122. 
Eitter,  Karl,  157. 
Eousseau,  Jean  Jacques,  146-149. 

Saros-Patak,  64. 

Schiller,  Hermann,  145. 

School    of    infancy,     103,    109-122, 

175. 
Science,  98. 

Sense-training,  115,  147. 
Skyte,  John,  58. 
Spencer,  Herbert,  148. 
Sturm,  John,  3,  5,  7,  14. 
Symbolism  of  Frobel,  164. 

Trotzendorf,  Valentine  Friedland,  8. 

University,  105. 


184 


INDEX 


Vergarius,  Petrus  Paulus,  8. 

Vernier,  A.  0.,  edition  of  the  Janua, 
129. 

Vestibulum,  129. 

Vittorino  da  Feltre,  8. 

Vives,  John  Lewis,  account  of  educa- 
tional views,  16-22. 

Volkelt.  Johannes,  145. 

Volksschule  of  Germany,  158. 

Vostrov8ky,  Clara,  40. 


Vrbka,    Anton, 
178. 


life    of    Comenius, 


Westphalia,  treaty  of,  62. 
Women,  education  of,  18,  88. 

Zerotin,  Karl  von,  patron  of  Comenius, 

46. 
Zoubek,  Franz,  edition  of  Comenius' 

writings,  176. 


^E 


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* 


OCT  3  0  1968  5  5  ,_ 


titCQ  LD    OCT  29  '68  -11  AM 


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IJKi  STAcifs     ffiO~5^T 


yp  i  -/ 
Y.B  63647 


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I 


UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA  LIBRARY 


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